A Blast from the Future
by Ms.Big.Artiste
Summary: Just your typical magic family readin your typical book from the future.
1. Chapter 1

**Authors Note: Hey everyone and anyone! So I am only starting to write stories so this may not be the best so constructive criticism is appreciated. You are probably going to skip this anyway, so R and R!**

**I don't own The Kane Chronicles because as I'm a girl I obviously can't be Rick Riordan. So, yeah, I don't own any of the words in bold.**

"Are you sure you don't want anything Ruby?" Julius asked his pregnant wife. They had just gotten back from the hospital for Ruby's monthly check-up and Julius was getting more and more annoying every month, or at least that's what Ruby thought. She went and took a seat at their dining table, it was brand new and there wasn't a single chip or groove to be seen. "Yes Julius, the only thing I want right now is for you to stop asking me if I want anything." Ruby gave her husband an exasperated smile and kissed his cheek. "C'mon, I promised Mum and Dad that we would visit them this week." Now it was Julius turn to be exasperated. "Do we have to, Ruby?" he asked. "You know that they don't like me so all these trips to visit them are pointless."

Their potential argument was broken up by a flash of light in the centre of the dining room table. Julius walked over to take a closer look only to find a note written on papyrus.

"Dear Mr. and Mrs. Kane,

I wish for you both to join me in The Hall of Ages as soon as you can.

I will explain when you arrive.

Chief Lector Iskander"

"I guess we'll just have to go to the first Nome then. I wonder why Iskander wants to see us so badly" Ruby said as she went to go and open up a portal in the garden. "Well at least we don have to visit your parents" Julius muttered as he followed his wife out the door.

30 minutes later at The First Nome

"So what you're telling us is that you got a book from the future and now we're all going read it? Oh! And that it happens to be about Julius kids?" Amos asked. He had arrived along with Zia's parents, Desjardins, Ruby and his brother Julius. "Yes that is what he said, Amos" Desjardins said in a voice you'd use when talking to a 2 year old.

"Well, let's get started then shall we?" Aisha (**Zia's mother, I don't know if that's her actual name but let's just go with that on for the sake of the story**) asked. "I'll read the first chapter and we can all take turns."

**"The Red Pyramid-Death at the Needle"**


	2. Chapter 2

_**Hey guys so sorry that it took me so long to update exams and all that I'm not going to bore you with the details. So on to that pesky thing called a disclaimer!**_

_**Disclaimer: I do not own The Red Pyramid or any of the characters mentioned except perhaps Zia's parents I have to look in to that but for now…..**_

"Death?! Who's dying? It isn't one of the children is it or Julius or Mum or Dad or -?!" Ruby ranted arms waving all over the place until she accidentally smacked Desjardins in the face. "Oh I'm so sorry Desjardins it was an accident, really!" "Just begin reading the blasted book already" Desjardins said as he straightened his poor nose.

**We only have a few hours, so listen carefully. If you're hearing this story, you're already in danger. Sadie and I might be your only chance.**

"What could they possibly be doing that could put them in so much danger?" asked Jamal. **(That is going to be Zia's fathers name for the story)**

"Well, the only thing I could think of would be if they were trying to host gods." That little bundle of sunshine came from…Amos! Le gasp! So of course this resulted in mass chaos. So let's skip all the yelling and just say that Amos was nursing a bloody nose, Jamal was sporting a black eye and Ruby was out of breath from yelling so much.

"Come now, let us all act like adults and not resort to violence against our own" advised Iskander. "Yes, Chief Lector" everyone answered before returning to the book.

**Go to the school. Find the locker.**

"A locker? What is a locker?" asked Aisha.

"A piece of furniture found commonly in a typical, American high school used for storing studying materials." explained Desjardins.

"Thank you Mr. Desjardins I'm glad to see that someone has manners and a respectable vocabulary." Jamal complimented.

"Well, I'm glad to see that you two nerds are getting along but I think we should keep reading." Julius interrupted.

"Julius!" Ruby reprimanded. But not before she allowed herself one, small giggle. "Behave yourself".

"Yes dear."

**I won't tell you which school or which locker, because if you're the right person, you'll find it. The combination is 13/32/33. **

"Hey, wait a minute. I know those numbers!" Julius interrupted.

"I'm sure you do, Julius, you are a genius after all." Amos said.

"Thank you, Amos."

**By the time you finish listening, you'll know what those numbers mean. Just remember the story we're about to tell you isn't complete yet. How it ends will depend on you.**

"Hey!" Julius finally realized Amos was being sarcastic.

**The most important thing: when you open the package and find what's inside, don't keep it longer than a week. Sure, it's tempting. I mean, it will grant you almost unlimited power. But if you possess it too long, it will consume you.**

This left everyone in deep thought, trying to understand what was going on in the future.

**Learn its secrets quickly and pass it on. Hide it for the next person, the way Sadie and I did for you. Then be prepared for your life to get very interesting.**

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" asked Amos.

"You have to listen and learn. Honestly, do you Americans know nothing of patience?" replied Aisha.

"If their child is in this book with our children I don't know how they have, er, will survive" Julius remarked to Ruby.

"Julius!" Ruby giggled slapping him lightly on the arm.

**Okay, Sadie is telling me to stop stalling and get on with the story.**

"Well at least we know that Sadie has her mother's temper anyway" Desjardins remarked.

"I am not going to hit him. I am not going to him." Everyone slowly began to edge away from Ruby as her mumbled mantra continued.

**Fine. I guess it started in London, the night our dad blew up the British Museum. My name is Carter Kane.**

"Carter and Sadie. Sadie and Carter. Carter and Sadie Kane. I like it, those names sound really good together!" Ruby was doing a little happy dance which involved clapping hands and squeals and jumping until…..

"Ruby! What are you doing?! You could get hurt?!" Julius screeched getting up to help Ruby to sit down.

"But Julius, that's our children's names! Carter and Sadie Kane!" Ruby replied sitting down to stop her husband from having a heart attack. "I wonder if I am going to have twins. Imagine Julius, twins!"

"Yeah, Julius, imagine, twins!" Amos snickered with Desjardins until someone slapped them on the back of the head.

"Who was that?" they both turned around only to see Iskander behind them.

"What? Did you just – huh- what?" They both looked around confused as to what just happened.

"Continue reading, please, Mrs. Rashid" Iskander said and everyone turned to see the Rashids staring befuddled at the scene the Kanes were making. "Right….."

**I'm fourteen and my home is a suitcase.**

"A suitcase?!"

**You think I'm kidding?**

"Yes, yes I do actually" and that came from the ever lovely Amos Kane.

"Doesn't even trust his own kin, I'm telling you now Aisha you can't trust Americans." Jamal remarked to his wife.

Little did he know that Amos and Julius were imitating him when he turned away.

**Since I was eight years old, my dad and I have traveled the world. I was born in L.A. but my dad's an archaeologist, so his work takes him all over.**

"What happened to me? And what about Sadie, they're twins they can't be separated?!" Ruby asked. "I'm sure nothing happened to you, dear. Please just-_stop_ hitting me Ruby!"

Poor Julius, it is just not his day is it?

**Go into a bookstore; find a book about Egypt, there's a pretty good chance it was written by Dr. Julius Kane.**

"Because I'm awesome".

"Julius….."

"I'm being quiet now."

**You want to know how Egyptians pulled the brains out of mummies, or built the pyramids, or cursed King Tut's tomb? My dad is your man.**

"Because I'm awesome again."

"Julius…"

**Of course, there are other reasons my dad moved around so much, but I didn't know his secret back then.**

"Are you telling me that neither of you told your children, or at least your son, that you're both magicians?" Desjardins asked. "That could get him killed at his age, him being who he is."

"Don't tell me how to parent my children, Desjardins" Ruby warned.

**I didn't go to school. My dad homeschooled me, if you can call it "home" schooling when you don't have a home. He sort of taught me whatever he thought was important, so I learned a lot about Egypt and basketball stats and my dad's favorite musicians.**

"Only you Julius, only you".

"Because I'm awesome".

**I read a lot, too—pretty much anything I could get my hands on, from dad's history books to fantasy novels—because I spent a lot of time sitting around in hotels and airports and dig sites in foreign countries where I didn't know anybody .My dad was always telling me to put the book down and play some ball. You ever tried to start a game of pick-up basketball in Aswan, Egypt? It's not easy.**

**Anyway, my dad trained me early to keep all my possessions in a single suitcase that fits in an airplane's overhead compartment. My dad packed the same way, except he was allowed an extra workbag for his archaeology tools. Rule number one: I was not allowed to look in his workbag. That's a rule I never broke until the day of the explosion.**

"Gee Julius your kid is boring!"

"Shut up Amos!"

**In happened on Christmas Eve. We were in London for visitation day with my sister, Sadie. **

"Visitation day? Is she in prison? What is it you call that prison for minors in America?" asked Aisha.

"Do you mean Juvie?" asked Desjardins.

"Why I believe I did thank you." Said Aisha. "Is your daughter in Juvie?"

"Of course not!" answered Ruby. "But I wouldn't be surprised if your child was!"

"Why you-!"

The rest of this conversation has been deleted due to serious sensory issues.

**See, Dad's only allowed two days a year with her—one in the winter, one in the summer—because our grandparents hate him.**

"What does that have to do with Sadie being in prison?" asked Julius.

"Sadie is not in prison!" Ruby protested.

"Of course not dear!" Julius agreed somewhat sarcastically.

**After our mom died,**

"What?! I-I-I-Im dead?" asked Ruby.

She turned to Julius looking for comfort only to find him in shock. He hadn't moved an inch since Aisha had read the beginning of the sentence.

"I believe that the reason we are reading this book is so that we change the future more to our liking." Advised Iskander. He turned to a quietly sobbing Ruby, Julius and Amos Kane. "I am very sorry for your loss but I think it best that we continue our evaluation of what is to come."

"Yes Chief Lector" everyone agreed.

**her parents (our grandparents) had this big court battle with Dad. After six lawyers, two fistfights, and a near fatal attack with a spatula**

"Bet that was you Julius!" chuckled Amos.

"Because I am awesome!"

"I swear Julius if you say that one more time I am going to make sure that you wont be able to have kids ever again!" threatened Ruby.

"Of course, dear, wouldn't dream of it!" said a terrified Julius Kane.

**(don't ask),they won the right to keep Sadie with them in England. She was only six, two years younger than me, **

"Aw, they're not twins." Complained Ruby.

"Yeah, a real shame" said Julius.

Little did Ruby know that Julius ba was doing the conga line by itself.

**and they couldn't keep us both—at least that was their excuse for not taking me.**

"Why don't they like Carter?" asked Ruby half angry, half confused.

"He probably looks like me" explained Julius.

"Still that's hardly fair, he is still their grandson. Their only grandson and he hasn't even done anything wrong. Maybe if I bring you with me on visits more often, we could go every week!" Ruby said.

"No, that's ok dear I don't mind honestly. Were so busy anyways,"said Julius trying to get Ruby not to bring him on visits to her parents.

**So Sadie was raised as a British school kid and I traveled around with my dad. We only saw Sadie twice a year, which was fine with me.**

**[Shut up, Sadie. Yes—I'm getting to that part.]**

"They definitely act like siblings anyway" said Amos laughing to himself.

**So anyway, my dad and I had just flown into Heathrow after a couple of delays. It was a drizzly, cold afternoon. The whole taxi ride into the city, my dad seemed kind of nervous.**

"But Julius doesn't get nervous, well except for that one trip with my parents to-" Ruby started.

"Keep reading!" shouted a very red Julius. "But Julius doesn't get nervous, well except for that one time when we went with my

**Now, my dad is a big guy. You wouldn't think anything could make him nervous. He has dark brown skin like mine,**

"Listen Julius, he has your skin tone!" said Ruby a big smile on her face.

"Yeah", breathed Julius, wonder in his eyes. He knew Ruby was gonna have a baby, but to know that he would look so much like him, he couldn't believe his ears as a big, goofy smile made its way onto his face.

**piercing brown eyes, a bald head, and a goatee, so he looks like a buff evil scientist. **

"Hahahhaahahahahahahhahahahhh aahahahahha, evil scientist, hahahhahaahhahahahh" laughed Amos until Julius kicked him off his chair, toppling him to the floor where he continued to laugh his head off.

**That afternoon he wore his cashmere winter coat and his best brown suit, the one he used for public lectures. Usually he exudes so much confidence that he dominates any room he walks into, but sometimes—like that afternoon—I saw another side to him that I didn't really understand. He kept looking over his shoulder like we were being hunted. **

"So whatever it will be Julius is in on it" commented Desjardins. "That shines a new light on things."

That left everyone confused.

**"Dad?" I said as we were getting off the A-40. "What's wrong?" "No sign of them," he muttered. Then he must've realized he'd spoken aloud, because he looked at me kind of startled. "Nothing, Carter. Everything's fine. "Which bothered me because my dad's a terrible liar,**

"No Im not", said an indignant Julius.

"Yes you are" everyone else agreed.

**I always knew when he was hiding something, but I also knew that no amount of pestering will get the truth out of him. He was probably trying to protect me, though from what I didn't know. Sometimes I wondered if he had some dark secret in his past, some old enemy following him, maybe but the idea seemed ridiculous. Dad was just an archaeologist.**

"Just an archaeologist my-"

"Be quiet, Amos! There is a child present!" reprimanded Ruby one hand over her swollen stomach.

"Huh?" asked a very confused Amos but everyone just ignored him.

**The other thing that troubled me: Dad was clutching his workbag. Usually when he does that, it means we're in danger. Like that time gunmen stormed our hotel in Cairo. I heard shots coming from the lobby and ran downstairs to check on my dad. By the time I got there, he was just calmly zipping up his workbag while three unconscious gunmen hung by their feet from the chandelier, their robes falling over their heads so you could see their boxer shorts**

Everyone burst into laughter, even Desjardins and Iskander. The image was just so ludicrous that they couldn't help themselves.

**Dad claimed not to have witnessed anything, and in the end the police blamed a freak chandelier time, we got caught in a riot in Paris. My dad found the nearest parked car, pushed me into the backseat, and told me to stay down. I pressed myself against the floorboards and kept my eyes shut tight. I could hear Dad in the driver's seat, rummaging in his bag, mumbling something to himself while the mob yelled and destroyed things outside. A few minutes later he told me it was safe to get up. Every other car on the block had been overturned and set on fire. Our car had been freshly washed and polished, and several twenty-euro notes had been tucked under the windshield wipers.**

Once again, the room burst out laughing.

**Anyway, I'd come to respect the bag. It was our good luck charm. But when my dad kept it close, it meant we were going to need good luck.**

**We drove through the city center, heading east toward my grandparents' flat. We passed the golden gates of Buckingham Palace, the big stone column in Trafalgar Square. London is a pretty cool place, but after you've been traveling for so long, all cities start to blend together. Other kids I meet sometimes say, "Wow, you're so lucky you get to travel so much." But it's not like we spend our time sightseeing or have a lot money to travel in style. We've stayed in some pretty rough places, and we hardly ever stay anywhere longer than a few days. Most of the time it feels like we're fugitives rather than tourists.**

"What is going on in the future?" was the question going through everyone's mind.

**I mean, you wouldn't think my dad's work was does lectures on topics like "Can Egyptian Magic Really Kill You?" and "Favorite Punishments in the Egyptian Underworld" and other stuff most people wouldn't care about.**

"Really Julius? Really?" asked Jamal.

"Have you no dignity or must you lower yourself even farther?"

Ruby began her mantra again.

**But like I said, there's that other side to him. He's always very cautious, checking every hotel room before he lets me walk into it. He'll dart into a museum to see some artifacts, take a few notes, and rush out again like he's afraid to be caught on the security cameras.** **One time when I was younger, we raced across the Charles de Gaulle airport to catch a last-minute flight, and Dad didn't relax until the plane was off the ground, I asked him point blank what he was running from, and he looked at me like I'd just pulled the pin out of a grenade. For a second I was scared he might actually tell me the truth. Then he said, "Carter, it's nothing." As if "nothing" were the most terrible thing in the world .After that, I decided maybe it was better not to ask questions.**

"Well, hes no fun" decided Amos.

**My grandparents, the Fausts, live in a housing development near Canary Wharf, right on the banks of the River Thames. The taxi let us off at the curb, and my dad asked the driver to wait. We were halfway up the walk when Dad froze. He turned and looked behind us. "What?" I asked.**

"A typical example of an American breaking a promise, there he goes asking a question when he says he wouldn't." commented Aisha.

"Needless to say that everyone was starting to get tired of the Rashids.

**Then I saw the man in the trench coat. He was across the street, leaning against a big dead tree, he was barrel shaped, with skin the color of roasted coffee. His coat and black pinstriped suit looked expensive. He had long braided hair and wore a black fedora pulled down low over his dark round glasses.**

"Amos," everyone said.

**He reminded me of a jazz musician, the kind my dad would always drag me to see in concert. Even though I couldn't see his eyes, I got the impression he was watching us. He might've been an old friend or colleague of Dad's.**

"Nope, just his brother who has no idea why he is there." Said the brother in question.

**No matter where we went, Dad was always running into people he knew. But it did seem strange that the guy was waiting here, outside my grandparents'. And he didn't look happy. "Carter," my dad said, "go on ahead." "But—""Get your sister. I'll meet you back at the taxi."He crossed the street toward the man in the trench coat, which left me with two choices: follow my dad and see what was going on, or do what I was told.I decided on the slightly less dangerous path. I went to retrieve my sister. **

"Well, doesn't he sound happy."

"Shut up Amos!" everyone shouted.

**Before I could even knock, Sadie opened the door. "Late as usual," she said. She was holding her cat, Muffin,who'd been a "going away" gift from Dad six years before. Muffin never seemed to get older or bigger. She had fuzzy yellow-and-black fur like a miniature leopard, alert yellow eyes, and pointy ears that were too tall for her head. A silver Egyptian pendant dangled from her collar. She didn't look anything like a muffin, but Sadie had been little when she named her, so I guess you have to cut her some hadn't changed much either since last summer.**

**[As I'm recording this, she's standing next to me, glaring, so I'd better be careful**

**how I describe her.]**

Amos mumbled something but Ruby was glaring at him and it was scary so he decided to keep his mouth shut.

**You would never guess she's my sister. First of all, she'd been living in England so long, she has a British accent.**

"Like me"

**Second, she takes after our mom, who was white, so Sadie's skin is much lighter than me. **

"Like me."

**She has straight caramel-colored hair, not exactly blond but not brown**

"Like me".

**, which she usually dyes with streaks of bright colors. That day it had red streaks down the left side. Her eyes are blue. I'm serious. Blue eyes, just like our mom's. She's only twelve, but she's exactly as tall as me, which is really annoying.**

"Don't worry, Carter, your Dad was a bit on the short side too. At your age." Snickered Amos remembering when he was the same height as hid older brother until Julius stood up and so did Amos. Well, lets just say that there was quite a gap.

**She was chewing gum as usual, dressed for her day out with Dad in battered jeans, a leather jacket, and combat boots, like she was going to a concert and was hoping to stomp on some people. **

"Hah! My daughter will never end up like that!" remarked Aisha.

"Yes, she shall uphold our familys honour" agreed Jamal.

Nobody bothered getting into an argument with the Rashids, they just weren't worth it.

**She had headphones dangling around her neck in case we bored her.**

**[Okay, she didn't hit me, so I guess I did an okay job of describing her.]**

Cue laughing Amos.

**"Our plane was late," I told her. She popped a bubble, rubbed Muffin's head, and tossed the cat inside. "Gran, going out!"From somewhere in the house, Grandma Faust said something I couldn't make out,probably "Don't let them in!"**

"OK, im going to have to have a serious conversation with my parents" muttered Ruby, much to Julius delight.

**Sadie closed the door and regarded me as if I were a dead mouse her cat had just dragged in.** **"So, here you are again." "Yep." "Come on, then." She sighed. "Let's get on with it."**

"They seem to be having a family argument" chuckled Desjardins.

**That's the way she was. No "Hi, how you been the last six months? So glad to see you!" or anything. But that was okay with me.**

"That's so sad" whispered a heartbroken Ruby before she turned to her husband for comfort on the state their family is in in the future.

**When you only see each other twice a year, it's like you're distant cousins rather than siblings. We had absolutely nothing in common except our parents. We trudged down the steps. I was thinking how she smelled like a combination of old people's house and bubble gum when she stopped so abruptly, I ran into her. "Who's that?" she asked I'd almost forgotten about the dude in the trench coat.**

"You cant forget about me, because Im awesome!" shouted Amos jumping up and doing the most ridiculous victory/happy in the history of ever.

"SHUT UP AMOS!" everyone yelled, leaving Amos terribly upset.

**He and my dad were standing across the street next to the big tree, having what looked like a serious argument. Dad's back was turned so I couldn't see his face, but he gestured with his hands like he does when he's agitated. The other guy scowled and shook his head. "Dunno," I said. "He was there when we pulled up." "He looks familiar." Sadie frowned like she was trying to remember. "Come on." "Dad wants us to wait in the cab,"**

"Finally a Kane with some sense". Poor Desjardins he never saw it coming…

**I said, even though I knew it was no use. Sadie was already in the of going straight across the street, she dashed up the sidewalk for half a block, ducking behind cars, then crossed to the opposite side and crouched under a low stone wall. She started sneaking toward our dad. I didn't have much choice but to follow her example, even though it made me feel kind of stupid.**

"Only 6 years in England and Sadie already thinks shes James Bond." Julius commented to Amos as they both began to snicker.

**"Six years in England," I muttered, "and she thinks she's James Bond."**

The brothers jaws fell open in shock. Amos turned to Julius and continued to gape.

**Sadie swatted me without looking back and kept creeping forward. A couple more steps and we were right behind the big dead tree. I could hear my dad on the other side, saying, "—have to, Amos. You know it's the right thing." "No," said the other man, who must've been Amos. His voice was deep and even—very insistent. His accent was American. "If I don't stop you, Julius, they will. The Per Ankh is shadowing you."**

"You've gone against the Per Ankh, Julius? That doesn't seem like you?" asked Iskander. "However, I do believe that this book is here to inform us and help us to shape our future the way we wish it to be shaped. So I shall not punish you in any way until we have further information." He finished with giving Desjardins a pointed look.

"Thank you, Chief Lector" Julius thanked, bowing his head in reverence to his superior.

**Sadie turned to me and mouth the words "Per what?" I shook my head, just as mystified. "Let's get out of here," I whispered, because I figured we'd be spotted any minute and get in serious trouble. Sadie, of course, ignored me. "They don't know my plan," my father was saying. "By the time they figure it out—" "And the children?" Amos asked. **

"Thank you for caring about them ,Amos" said Ruby as she walked over to him and hugged him and Julius did so also.

**The hairs stood up on the back of my neck. "What about them?" "I've made arrangements to protect them," my dad said. "Besides, if I don't do this, we're all in danger. Now, back off." "I can't, Julius."**

"Thank you, Amos".

**"Then it's a duel you want?" Dad's tone turned deadly serious. "You never could beat me, Amos."**

"I am awewsome!"

"Julius did we not talk about this!"

"Yes, dear…."

**I hadn't seen my dad get violent since the Great Spatula Incident, and I wasn't anxious to see a repeat of that,**

"You know I really wanna know what happened!"

**but the two men seemed to be edging toward a fight. Before I could react, Sadie popped up and shouted, "Dad!" He looked surprised when she tackled-hugged him, but not nearly as surprised as the other guy, Amos. He backed up so quickly, he tripped over his own trench coat.**

HAHHAHHAHAHAHAAHHAA

**He'd taken off his glasses. I couldn't help thinking that Sadie was right. He did look familiar—like a very distant memory.**

"See that Julius. They remember me!" exclaimed Amos.

**"I—I must be going," he said. he straightened his fedora and lumbered down the road. Our dad watched him go. He kept one arm protectively around Sadie and one hand inside the workbag slung over his shoulder. Finally, when Amos disappeared around the corner, Dad relaxed. He took his hand out of the bag and smiled at Sadie. "Hello, sweetheart." Sadie pushed away from him and crossed her arms. "Oh, now it's sweetheart, is it?**

"Can you not teach your daughter to mind her manners?" asked Aisha.

"Now Aisha, were not even entirely sure she has manners to mind." Replied Jamal.

Everyone sighed.

**You're late. Visitation Day's nearly over! And what was that about? Who's Amos, and what's the Per Ankh?" Dad stiffened. He glanced at me like he was wondering how much we'd overheard. "It's nothing," he said, trying to sound upbeat. "I have a wonderful evening planned. Who'd like a private tour of the British Museum?" Sadie slumped in the back of the taxi between Dad and me. "I can't believe it," she grumbled. "One evening together, and you want to do research. Dad tried for a smile. "Sweetheart, it'll be fun. The curator of the Egyptian collection personally invited—" "Right, big surprise." Sadie blew a strand of red-streaked hair out of her face. "Christmas Eve, and we're going to see some moldy old relics from Egypt. Do you ever think about anything else? **

"You have to admit Julius, it isn't the most exciting trip-"

"Just shut up Amos!"

"Julius no swearing in front of Carter!"

**Dad didn't get mad. He never gets mad at Sadie. **

"Oooooooh, jealousy".

Thwack!

"Owwwwwwww, Ruby!"

**He just stared out of the window at the darkening sky and the rain.** **"Yes," he said quietly. "I do."**

**Whenever Dad got quiet like that and stared off into nowhere, I knew he was thinking about our mom. The last few months, it had been happening a lot. I'd walk into our hotel room and find him with his cell phone in his hands, Mom's picture smiling up at him from the screen—her hair tucked under a headscarf, her blue eyes startlingly bright against the desert backdrop.**

*Sniffle*

"Ruby, be quiet, this is when theyre goin to make you both feel like bad parents!" scolded Amos.

Slap!

"OW!"

**Or we'd be at some dig site. I'd seen Dad staring at the horizon, and I'd know he was remembering how he's met her—two young scientists in the Valley of the Kings, on a dig to discover a lost tomb. Dad was an Egyptologist. Mom was an anthropologist looking for ancient DNA. He'd told me the story a thousand times. Our taxi snaked its way along the banks of the Thames. Just past Waterloo Bridge, my dad tensed. "Driver," he said. "Stop here a moment." The cabbie pulled over on the Victoria Embankment. "What is it, Dad?" I asked.**

"Not even your son understands your craziness". My, my the Rashids do not play well with others.

**He got out of the cab like he hadn't heard me. when Sadie and I joined him on the sidewalk, he was staring up at Cleopatra's Needle. In case you've never seen it the Needle is an obelisk, not a needle, and it doesn't have anything to do with Cleopatra. I guess the British just thought the name sounded cool when they brought it to **

**London. It's about seventy feet tall, which would've been really impressive back in Ancient Egypt, but on the Thames, with all the tall buildings around, it looks small and sad. You could drive right by it and not even realize you'd just passed something that was a thousand years older than the city of London. "God." Sadie walked around in a frustrated circle. "Do we have to stop for every monument?"**

"Haha, well, actually, the first time your father visited London, he did stop at every monument" giggled Ruby.

Needless to say Julius was now a tomato coloured, buff, evil scientist.

**My dad stared at the top of the obelisk. "I had to see it again," he murmured. "Where it happened..." A freezing wind blew off the river. I wanted to get back in the cab, but my dad was really starting to worry me. I'd never seen him so distracted. "What, Dad?" I asked. "What happened here?" "The last place I saw her. Sadie stopped pacing. She scowled at me uncertainly, then back at Dad. "Hang on. Do you mean Mum?"**

"No….."

**Dad brushed Sadie's hair behind her ear, and she was so surprised, she didn't even push him away. I felt like the rain had frozen me solid. Mom's death had always been a forbidden subject. I knew she'd died in an accident in London.**

"I died in…..London?" asked Ruby.

"That is what it says Mrs. Kane" replied Aisha.

"Oh, I just always thought that I would die somewhere more exotic…."

**I knew my grandparents blamed my dad. But no one would ever tell us the details. I'd given up asking my dad, partly because it made him so sad, partly because it made him so sad, partly because he absolutely refused to tell me anything. "When you're older" was all he would say, which was the most frustrating response ever. **

"Really? That's what I tell them? Wow, I make a very, boring parent" said Julius.

"Yes, yes you are" agreed Amos.

"You weren't supposed to agree with me Amos" sighed Julius.

**"You're telling us she died here," I said. "At Cleopatra's Needle? What happened?" He lowered his head. "Dad!" Sadie protested. "I go past this every day, and you mean to say—all this time—and I didn't even know?" "Do you still have your cat?" Dad asked her, which seemed like a really stupid question.**

**"Of course I've still got the cat!" she said. "What does that have to do with anything?"**

"I think youre losing it Julie", remarked Amos, twirling his finger around in circles beside his ear.

Julius gave him a look.

Amos shut his mouth.

**"And your amulet?" Sadie's hand went to her neck. When we were little, right before Sadie went to live with our grandparents, Dad had given us both Egyptian amulets. Mine was an Eye of Horus, which was a popular protection symbol in Ancient Egypt. In fact my dad says the modern pharmacist's symbol, Rx, is a simplified version of the Eye of Horus, because medicine is supposed to protect you. Anyway, I always wore my amulet under my shirt, but I figured Sadie would've lost hers or thrown it away.**

"He has very little faith in his sister, " said Desjaredins. "You obviously never taught him how important family is."

**To my surprise, she nodded. "'Course I have it, Dad, but don't change the subject. Gran's always going on about how you caused Mum's death. That's not true, is it?"** **We waited. For once, Sadie and I wanted exactly the same thing—the truth.** **"The night your mother died," my father started, "here at the Needle—"**

**A sudden flash illuminated the embankment. I turned, half blind, and just for a moment I glimpsed two figures: a tall pale man with a forked beard**

"That sounds like you Desjardins" said Julius in an innocent voice and big, wide, fake eyes.

"Hmmph!"

**and wearing cream-colored robes, and a coppery-skinned girl in dark blue robes and a headscarf—the kind of clothes I'd seen hundreds of times in Egypt. They were just standing there side by side, not twenty feet away, watching us. Then the light faded. The figures melted into a fuzzy afterimage. When my eyes readjusted to the darkness, they were gone. **

**"Um..." Sadie said nervously. "Did you just see that?" "Get in the cab," my dad said, pushing us toward the curb. "We're out of time." From that point on, Dad clammed up.**

"This is all really…odd" said a confused Ruby.

"It makes perfect sense to me" retaliated Aisha.

**"This isn't the place to talk," he said, glancing behind us. He'd promised the cabbie an extra ten pounds if he got us to the museum in under five minutes, and the cabbie was doing his best. "Dad," I tried, "those people at the river—" "And that other bloke, Amos," Sadie said. "Are they Egyptian police or something?" "Look, both of you," Dad said, "I'm going to need your help tonight. I know it's hard, but you have to be patient. I'll explain everything, I promise, after we get to the museum. I'm going to make everything right again."**

"Why cant I just hurry up and explain whats going on?"a frustrated Julius.

**"What do you mean?" Sadie insisted. "Make what right? "Dad's expression was more than sad. It was almost guilty. With a chill, I thought about what Sadie had said: about our grandparents blaming him for Mom's death. That couldn't be what he was talking about, could it?The cabbie swerved onto Great Russell Street and screeched to a halt in front of the museum's main gates."Just follow my lead," Dad told us. "When we meet the curator, act normal." I was thinking that Sadie never acted normal, but I decided not to say would've swatted her brother, but he was still holding Zia, and was afraid to hurt her sister-in-law. Hurting her brother for a joke is one thing. Hurting her sister-in-law is another. Zia has been in way too many things in her climbed out of the cab. I got our luggage while Dad paid the driver with a big wad of cash. Then he did something strange. He threw a handful of small objects into the backseat—they looked like stones, but it was too dark for me to be sure. "Keep driving," he told the cabbie. "Take us to Chelsea." **

"Ah, very clever" said Desjardins.

**That made no sense since we were already out of the cab, but the driver sped off. I glanced at Dad, then back at the cab, and before it turned the corner and disappeared in the dark, I caught a weird glimpse of three passengers in the backseat: a man and two kids. "London cabs don't stay empty very long," he said matter-of-factly. "Come along, kids." He marched off through the wrought iron gates. For a second, Sadie and **

**I hesitated. "Carter, what is going on?" I shook my head. "I'm not sure I want to know."**

"Well I do"

**"Well, stay out here in the cold if you want, but I'm not leaving without an explanation." She turned and marched after our dad. Looking back on it, I should run. I should've dragged Sadie out of there and gotten as far away as possible. Instead I followed her through the gates.**


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Ok, I have never realized how long it actually takes to write a chapter! I have a whole new respect for people who update every week. You'd think that they have no job with the amount of creativity and spare time they have. Alright, so, im starting to type this on the 25****th**** so lets see how long this takes. Finally, big thanks to the growing amount of people who are favouriting and following the stories aswell as reviewing! **

**Chapter 2: An Explosion for Christmas**

"Who would like to read the second chapter?" asked Aisha.

"I shall, dear" replied Jamal, taking the book from his wife's outstretched hands.

**An Explosion for Christmas**

**I'd been to the British Museum before. In fact I've been in more museums than I like to admit—it makes me sound like a total geek. [That's Sadie in the background, yelling that I am a total geek. Thanks, Sis.]**

"You just have to love your siblings" sighed Amos.

"C'mon Amos, I know you love me really, I mean how can you not? I am awesome after all!" retaliated Julius.

"That's it Julius! No more talking for the rest of the chapter or you'll have to sleep on the couch for the next month!" shouted Ruby, fed up of her husband's antics, usually they're quite funny but she's after getting very stressed because of the book. Not to mention all the extra hormones from being pregnant- not that she was fed up off being pregnant! In fact, she was even more excited but still, Julius _really_ needs to learn when to just _shut up!_

**Anyway, the museum was closed and completely dark, but the curator and two security guards were waiting for us on the front steps. "Dr. Kane!" The curator was a greasy little dude in a cheap suit. I'd seen mummies with more hair and better teeth.**

Collective giggling.

**He shook my dad's hand like he was meeting a rock star. **

"I highly doubt Kane is that famous among mortals" commented Desjardins, taking advantage of the fact that Julius couldn't fight back.

Julius glared at him but it only made Desjardins smirk.

**"Your last paper on Imhotep—brilliant! I don't know how you translated those spells!" "Im-ho-who?" Sadie muttered to me.**

"Ridiculous! You have taught your daughter nothing!" said Jamal enraged that Julius didn't pass any of his knowledge to his daughter, only his son.

"Sadie has been living with her grandparents and they obviously don't feel that Sadie should know about the magical world" replied Ruby calmly, she wasn't going to lose her temper, especially when she was talking to the Rashids, she had a feeling that they would be very important in the future of her family's future.

**"Imhotep," I said. "High priest, architect. Some say he was a magician. Designed the first step pyramid. You know."**

"It appears that your son, Carter, is very practiced in the history of Egypt" commented Iskander. "You should be very proud of him".

"Thank you, Chief Lector" said Ruby and Julius bowed his head to show his gratitude to his superior.

**"Don't know," Sadie said. "Don't care. Dad expressed his gratitude to the curator for hosting us on a holiday. Then he put his hand on my shoulder. "Dr. Martin, I'd like you to meet Carter and Sadie." "Ah! Your son, obviously, and—" The curator looked hesitantly at Sadie. "And this young lady?" "My daughter," Dad said. Dr. Martin's stare went temporarily blank. Doesn't matter how open-minded or polite people think they are, there's always that moment of confusion that flashes across their faces when they realize Sadie is part of our family.**

"The nerve of them!" said Ruby. Just because they had a different skin tone doesn't mean that they can't be related!

Julius put his arms around his wife and hugged her, rubbing soothing circles into her back.

**I hate it, but over the years I've come to expect it. The curator regained his smile. "Yes, yes, of course. Right this way, Dr. Kane. We're very honored!" The security guards looked the doors behind us. They took our luggage, then one of them reached for Dad's workbag. "Ah, no," Dad said with a tight smile. "I'll keep this one." The guards stayed in the foyer as we followed the curator into the Great Court. It was ominous at night. Dim light from the glass-domed ceiling cast crosshatched shadows across the walls like a giant spider web. Our footsteps clicked on the white marble floor. "So," Dad said, "the stone."**

"You don't mean…" Desjardins trailed off.

**"Yes!" the curator said. **

Cue quiet laughing.

**"Though I can't imagine what new information you could glean from it. It's been studied to death—our most famous artifact, of course." "Of course," Dad said. "But you may be surprised." "What's he on about now?" Sadie whispered to me.**

"How can she not realize?" asked Ruby. "Maybe we should teach them something about the magical world or Egypt at least." She decided to talk about it with Julius later.

**I didn't answer. I had a sneaking suspicion what stone they were talking about, but I couldn't figure out why Dad would drag us out on Christmas Eve to see it. I wondered what he'd been about to tell us at Cleopatra's Needle—something about our mother and the night she died. And why did he keep glancing around as if he expected those strange people we'd seen at the Needle to pop up again? We were locked in a museum surrounded by guards and high-tech security. Nobody could bother us in here— I hoped.**

"Ooh, foreshadowing…." Whispered Amos excitedly.

_Kerplack!_

"Ow!"

**We turned left into the Egyptian wing. The walls were lined with massive statues of the pharaohs and gods, but my dad bypassed them all and went straight for the main attraction in the middle of the room. "Beautiful," my father murmured. "And it's not a replica?" "No, no," the curator promised. "We don't always keep the actual stone on display, but for you—this is quite real."**

"No…" the Rashids whispered, realizing what the curator was talking about.

**We were staring at a slab of dark gray rock about three feet tall and two feet wide. It sat on a pedestal, encased in a glass box. The flat surface of the stone was chiseled with three distinct bands of writing. The top part was Ancient Egyptian picture writing: hieroglyphics. The middle section...**

"Demotic" answered everyone in the room. Desjardins was in awe, this was a very important artifact from his familys past.

**I had to rack my brain to remember what my dad called it: Demotic, a kind of writing from the period when the Greeks controlled Egypt and a lot of Greek words got mixed into Egyptian. The last lines were in Greek.** **"The Rosetta Stone," I said.**

"Very good, Carter" whispered Ruby.

"He's very intelligent" complimented Amos.

"Like his father" whispered Julius, joining the whispered conversation.

"Julius…."

**"Isn't that a computer program?" Sadie asked.**

Silence.

**I wanted to tell her how stupid she was,**

"It appears your son has no control over his emotions, just like you Mr. and Mrs. Kane" commented Jamal.

"Now, now Mr. Rashid, I think that it is time for everyone to calm down and stop judging others without knowing anything about them. From now on, no one shall comment unless they have something pleasant to say or they shall have a secret about them spilled" suggested Iskander.

"Yes, Chief Lector" everyone agreed a bit, well, reluctantly.

**but the curator cut me off with a nervous laugh. "Young lady, the Rosetta Stone was the key to deciphering hieroglyphics! It was discovered by Napoleon's army in 1799 and—" "Oh, right," Sadie said. "I remember now." I knew she was just saying that to shut him up, but my dad wouldn't let it go.**

"Of course I wouldn't, its important that Sadie knows the importance of the stone" said Julius.

Ruby glared at him.

"Oops?" he offered.

"Oops" she muttered. "Ok, you can talk as long as you please don't comment on something stupid. I don't want to give those terrible two a reason—"

"Mrs. Kane used to do ballet lessons until she was put in the front row for a production and fell off stage" said Iskander.

Ruby turned a very, bright shade of red.

**"Sadie," he said, "until this stone was discovered, regular mortals... er, I mean, no one had been able to read hieroglyphics for centuries. The written language of Egypt had been completely forgotten. Then an Frenchman named Champollion took up the work and cracked the code of hieroglyphics." Sadie chewed her gum, unimpressed. **

**"****I say, that girl has no respect, probably because her father abandoned her—"started Aisha but was interrupted by Iskander.**

"Mrs. Rashid became pregnant before her and her husband got married" he said pleasantly.

Aisha buried her face in her hands asking herself how he knew that.

**"What's it say, then?" Dad shrugged. "Nothing important. It's basically a thank-you letter from some priests to King Ptolemy V. When it was first craved, the stone was no big deal. But over the centuries... over the centuries it has become a powerful symbol. Perhaps the most important connection between Ancient Egypt and the modern world. I was a fool not to realize its potential sooner."**

"Nothing important! Why you-" and that was the ever lovely Desjardins.

"Mr. Desjardins once partook in the Carnival parade in Rio de Janeiro."

**He'd lost me, and apparently the curator too. "Dr. Kane?" he asked. "Are you quite all right?" Dad breathed deeply. "My apologies, Dr. Martin. I was just... thinking aloud. If I could have the glass removed? And if you could bring me the papers I asked for from your archives." Dr. Martin nodded. He pressed a code into a small remote control, and the front of the glass box clicked open. "It will take a few minutes to retrieve the notes," Dr. Martin said. "For anyone else, I would hesitate to grant unguarded access to the stone, as you've requested. I trust you'll be careful."**

Desjardins started to think angry thoughts very, very loudly.

**He glanced at us kids like we were troublemakers.**

"As if?! Of course they are troublemakers!" Jamal exclaimed.

"Mr. Rashid"s trousers were once eaten by a crocodile".

"No they weren't…." he protested feebly.

**"We'll be careful," Dad promised. As soon as Dr. Martin's steps receded, Dad turned to us with a frantic look in his eyes. "Children, this is very important. You have to stay out of this room."**

"What on earth are you doing, Julius?" asked Amos, he was scared to say something that might possibly, in any way, be considered an insult.

"I am unaware" replied his older brother, tight lipped but feeling exactly the same way.

**He slipped his workbag off his shoulder and unzipped it just enough to pull out a bike chain and padlock. "Follow Dr. Martin. You'll find his office at the end of the Great Court on the left. There's only one entrance. Once he's inside, wrap this around the door handles and lock it tight. We need to delay him." "You want us to lock him in?" Sadie asked, suddenly interested. "Brilliant!"**

"Of course," Aisha said, exasperated. "Just tell her she can lock someone in and she thinks it a great idea, honestly!"

"Mrs. Rashid?"

"Yes, Chief Lector?"

"You are pregnant with a daughter"

"A…a…a…..daughter?" asked Jamal. He suddenly jumped from his seat and swung Aisha around and around laughing with pure joy at the thought of a baby girl. Giggling at her husbands reaction, Aisha reached up and gave him a quick peck on his lips. Eventually they seemed to remember where they are and sat down.

**"Dad," I said, "what's going on?" "We don't have time for explanations," he said. "This will be our only chance. They're coming." "Who's coming?" Sadie asked.**

"I believe we are" answered Desjardins.

"Desjardins, you do realize you are talking to a book, right?" asked Ruby.

**He took Sadie by the shoulders. "Sweetheart, I love you. And I'm sorry... I'm sorry for many things, but there's no time now. If this works, I promise I'll make everything better for all of us. Carter, you're my brave man. You have to trust me. Remember, lock up Dr. Martin. Then stay out of this room!" Chaining the curator's door was easy. But as soon as we'd finished, we looked back the way we'd come and saw blue light streaming from the Egyptian gallery, as if our dad had installed a giant glowing aquarium.**

"You aren't Julius?" asked Ruby. "Please tell me you aren't!"

"I….I don't know what to tell you, Ruby. All I can tell you is that this is in the future and that-"

"There shall be no allegations about any people present".

"Yes, Chief Lector".

**Sadie locked eyes with me. "Honestly, do you have any idea what he's up to?" "None," I said. "But he's been acting strange lately. Thinking a lot about Mom. He keeps her picture..." I didn't want to say more. **

The room was silent, all heads bowed in respect to Ruby.

**Fortunately Sadie nodded like she understood. "What's in his workbag?" she asked. "I don't know. He told me never to look. **

"Never thought to…oh my-!"

"Amos Kane don't you dare even _think_ about finishing that sentence!"

**" ****Sadie raised an eyebrow. "And you never did? God, that is so like you Carter. You're hopeless." **

"No manners whatsoever…." Muttered Aisha.

"Mrs. Rashid, need I remind you of the time you argued with your brother because you were sneaking out to meet Jamal?" asked Iskander.

"No, Chief Lector, I shall watch my mouth also" replied Aisha, blushing like a beetroot.

**I wanted to defend myself, but just then a tremor shook the floor. Startled, Sadie grabbed my arm. "He told us to stay put. I suppose you're going to follow that order too?" Actually, that order was sounding pretty good to me,** **but Sadie sprinted down the hall, and after a moment's hesitation, I ran after her.**

"Good, family should stick together", commented Iskander. "If any enemy is to be defeated or anyone saved, we must unite."

**When we reached the entrance of the Egyptian gallery, we stopped dead in our tracks. Our dad stood in front of the Rosetta Stone with his back to us. A blue circle glowed on the floor around him, as if someone had switched on hidden neon tubes in the floor. My dad had thrown off his overcoat. His workbag lay open at his feet, revealing a wooden box about two feet long, painted with Egyptian images. **

"No…." breathed Julius. He has already lost his wife in the future, surely he wouldn't do anything that could result in him losing his children. His children.

**"What's he holding?" Sadie whispered to me. "Is that a boomerang?" Sure enough, when Dad raised his hand, he was brandishing a curved white stick. It did look like a boomerang.**

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Hey, Julius, your kids think that your wand is a boomerang!

"Mr. Kane once got his hair stuck in the vacuum."

Amos decided to imitate a tomato right about there.

**But instead of throwing the stick, he touched it to the Rosetta Stone. Sadie caught her breath. Dad was writing on the stone. Wherever the boomerang made contact, glowing blue lines appeared on the granite. Hieroglyphics. It made no sense. How could he write glowing words with a stick? But the image was bright and clear: ram's horns above a box and an X. "Open," Sadie murmured.**

"Ha! My daughter does know something about Egypt. She can read hieroglyphics!" cheered Julius.

Ruby turned to face Julius and slapped him lightly on the back of the head. "That's enough, dear".

**I stared at her, because it sounded like she had just translated the word, but that was impossible. I'd been hanging around Dad for years, and even I could read only a few hieroglyphs. They are seriously hard to learn. Dad raised his arms. He chanted: "Wo-seer, i-ei." And two more hieroglyphic symbols burned blue against the surface of the Rosetta Stone. As stunned as I was, I recognized the first symbol. It was the name of the Egyptian god of the dead. "Wo-seer," I whispered. I'd never heard it pronounced that way, but I knew what it meant. "Osiris." "Osiris, come," Sadie said, as if in a trance. Then her eyes widened. "No!" she shouted. "Dad, no!" Our father turned in surprise. He started to say, "Children—" but it was too late. **

"Too late?" echoed Ruby. "Too late for what? What happens next?"

At this point she was starting to get herself very worked up worrying about her family so Amos and Julius stepped in to comfort and console her.

**The ground rumbled. The blue light turned to searing white, and the Rosetta Stone exploded.**

"How dare you?! Why, I'm going to-!" Desjardins yelled, before disappearing in a puff of smoke.

"Mr. Desjardins has been sent someplace else until he gets a hold of his emotions."

Explained Iskander.

**When I regained consciousness, the first thing I heard was laughter—horrible, gleeful laughter mixed with the blare of the museum's security alarms. I felt like I'd just been run over by a tractor. I sat up, dazed, and spit a piece of Rosetta Stone out of my mouth. The gallery was in ruins. Waves of fire rippled in pools along the floor. Giant statues had toppled. Sarcophagi had been knocked off their pedestals. Pieces of Rosetta Stone had exploded outward with such a force that they'd embedded themselves in the columns, the walls, the other exhibits. **

"Oh man, Julius. You really have done it this time." Muttered Amos, shaking his head in awe of the damage his brother had managed to inflict on the poor exhibit.

**Sadie was passed out next to me, but she looked unharmed. I shook her shoulder, and she grunted. "Ugh." In front of us, where the Rosetta Stone had been, stood a smoking, sheared-off pedestal. The floor was blackened in a starburst pattern, except for the glowing blue circle around our father. He was facing our direction, but he didn't seem to be looking at us. A bloody cut ran across his scalp. He gripped the boomerang tightly.I didn't understand what he was looking at. Then the horrible laughter echoed around the room again, and I realized it was coming from right in front of me.** **Something stood between our father and us. At first, I could barely make it out—just a flicker of heat. But as I concentrated, it took on a vague form—the fiery outline of a man.**

"Oh no…."

Horror filled everyone in the room. Why did this have to happen?

**He was taller than Dad, and his laugh cut through me like a chainsaw. "Well done," he said to my father. "Very well done, Julius." "You were not summoned!" My father's voice trembled. He held up the boomerang, but the fiery man flicked one finger, and the stick flew from Dad's hand, shattering against the wall. "I am never summoned, Julius," the man purred. "But when you open a door, you must be prepared for guests to walk through." "Back to the Duat!" my father roared. "I have the power of the Great King!" "Oh, scary," the fiery man said with amusement. "And even if you knew how to use that power, which you do not, he was never my match. I am the strongest. Now you will share his fate." I couldn't make sense with it, but I knew that I had to help my dad. I tried to pick up the nearest chunk of stone, but I was so terrified my fingers felt frozen and numb. My hands were useless. Dad shot me a silent look of warning: Get out. I realized he was intentionally keeping the fiery man's back to us, hoping Sadie and I would escape unnoticed.**

"You're doing a god thing in the future, Mr. Kane and I can only hope that I would do the same thing should something like that ever happen to me" complimented Jamal as Aisha moved across the room to sit next to Ruby and hold her hand.

Julius bowed his head, acknowledging the compliment and temporary truce.

**Sadie was still groggy. I managed to drag her behind a column, into the shadows. When she started to protest, I clamped my hand over her mouth. That woke her up. She saw what was happening and stopped fighting. Alarms blared. Fire circled around the doorways of the gallery. The guards had to be on their way, but I wasn't sure if that was a good thing for us. Dad crouched to the floor, keeping his eyes on his enemy, and opened his painted wooden box. He brought out a small rod like a ruler. He muttered something under his breath and the rod elongated into a wooden staff as tall as he was. Sadie made a squeaking sound. I couldn't believe my eyes either, but things only got weirder.**

"Things always get weirder for the Kanes" whispered Amos receiving some hesitant giggles in return.

**Dad threw his staff at the fiery man's feet, and it changed into an enormous serpent—ten feet long and as big around as I was—with coppery scales and glowing red eyes. It lunged at the fiery man, who effortlessly grabbed the serpent by its neck. The man's hand burst into white-hot flames, and the snake burned to ashes. "An old trick, Julius," the fiery man chided. My dad glanced at us, silently urging us again to run. Part of me refused to believe any of this was real. Maybe I was unconscious, having a nightmare. Next to me, Sadie picked up a chunk of stone. "How many?" my dad asked quickly, trying to keep the fiery man's attention. "How many did I release?" "Why, all five," the man said, as if explaining something to a child.**

"Ah, it seems we shall face some new challenges in the future. The Age of Peace is coming to an end" said Iskander

**"You should know we're a package deal, Julius. Soon I'll release even more, and they'll be grateful. I shall be named king again." "The Demon Days," my father said. "They'll stop you before it's too late."** **The fiery man laughed. "You think the House can stop me? Those old fools can't even stop arguing among themselves. Now let the story be told anew. And this time you shall never rise!" The fiery man waved his hand. The blue circle at Dad's feet went dark. Dad grabbed for his toolbox, but it skittered across the floor. "Good-bye, Osiris," the fiery man said. With another flick of his hand, he conjured a glowing coffin around our dad. At first it was transparent, but as our father struggled and pounded on its sides, the coffin became more and more solid—a golden Egyptian sarcophagus inlaid with jewels. My dad caught my eyes one last time, and mouthed the word Run! before the coffin sank into the floor, as if the ground had turned to water. "Dad!" I screamed.**

"No child should ever have to witness their Father in any kind of pain" commented Aisha caught up in a hug with Ruby who was crying floods of tears by now.

**Sadie threw her stone, but it sailed harmlessly through the fiery man's head. He turned, and for one terrible moment, his face appeared in the flames. What I saw made no sense. It was as if someone had superimposed two different faces on top of each other—one almost human, with pale skin, cruel, angular features, and glowing red eyes, the other like an animal with dark fur and sharp fangs. Worse than a dog or a wolf or a lion—some animal I'd never seen before. Those red eyes staring at me, and I knew I was going to die.** **Behind me, heavy footsteps echoed on the marble floor of the Great Court. Voices were barking orders. The security guards, maybe the police—but they'd never get here in time.**

Ruby let out a wail of grief for her poor family.

**The fiery man lunged at us. A few inches from my face, something shoved him backward. The air sparked with electricity. The amulet around my neck grew uncomfortably hot. The fiery man hissed, regarding me more carefully. "So... it's you." The building shook again. At the opposite end of the room, part of the wall exploded in a brilliant flash of light. Two people stepped through the gap—the man and the girl we'd seen at the Needle, their robes swirling around them. Both of them held staffs.** **The fiery man snarled. He looked at me one last time and said, "Soon, boy." Then the entire room erupted in flames. A blast of heat sucked all the air out of my lungs and I crumbled to the floor. The last thing I remember, the man with the forked beard and the girl in blue were standing over me. I heard the security guards running and shouting, getting closer. The girl crouched over me and drew a long curved knife from her belt. "We must act quickly," she told the man. "Not yet," he said with some reluctance. His thick accent sounded French.**

"Thank you, Desjardins" choked out the Kanes.

**"We must be sure before we destroy them." I closed my eyes and drifted into unconsciousness. **


	4. Reflection

**A.N.: Hey again! So I've decided I'm going to date when I start each chapter and when I'm finished will be the updated date. Now it's the 25****th**** of May 2013.**

**DISCLAIMER: I own nothing.**

After all the information that they had learned from the past chapter everyone decided to leave for bed. Iskander insisted that they sleep in the spare rooms they have prepared in the First Nome because of the ladies being heavily pregnant at 8 and 6 months respectively.

**Aisha and Jamal:**

The Rashids lay in bed together both facing opposite directions. "I just think that we should apologize to the Kanes for being so cruel to them. They're losing everybody in this book. Their children are left all alone in the world with only an unfamiliar uncle and their mother's parents who hate Carter. At least our daughter hasn't been mentioned yet because the book only seems to bring bad news "explained Aisha.

"They are still not Egyptian! They are outsiders, they do not deserve magic or knowledge of our gods. The gods chose the Egyptians for a reason! Why can't they just stick with the mysterious magic that was appearing in Manhattan and San Fransisco?" Jamal ranted.

Aisha's expression softened as she realized what was troubling her husband. "You're worried aren't you? That our child will end up involved in all this, in the Kanes? I bet that ever since Iskander told us that she's a girl you've been worried she might get involved with Carter Kane. Aren't you?"

Jamal turned around on the bed to face her. "The Kanes are trouble with a capital T, I just don't want her to end up in the middle of this whole rebellion against the old ways. Not to forget, the Kane family are losing members rapidly, what if she falls for the boy and they get married and….and….."

"And they end up in love and decide to move away and start their own family? Jamal you will never lose us. I promised for better or for worse." Aisha pulled her husband close glad that that conversation was over. "Now, on to baby names. How do feel about Zia?"

Jamal let out a soft laugh. "I was thinking more of Adara…"

"Jamal!"

**Amos, Desjardins and Iskander: **

"Gentlemen you may have wondered why I have gathered you here at this time" started Iskander.

"Yes, Chief Lector" they both answered.

"Oh enough of that already! Just call me Iskander and please feel free to use colloquial language whilst addressing me" he requested. "Now, you are both here to tell me your true thoughts and opinions on the book. You each represent one side. Michel: The Rashids. Amos: The Kanes. So please tell me your equal opinions".

**Ruby and Julius:**

The married couple lay in bed Julius wrapping a protective arm around Ruby as he slept. Ruby however was dealing with a bout of insomnia so decided to simply gaze at her husband as she thought about how hard the next few years would be. Sure they'd have a few years of blissful normalcy while their children live through their toddler years but they would still be under 10 years old when she…..died, gods she has to choke out the word.

Her two children, Carter and Sadie, split apart through no decision or fault of their own. Which leads her to her parents, how could they only take Sadie? What about Carter? How could they not like him because of his father, how could they not like Julius and to bring out that hatred on a child, her child, her baby? How could they be so…dare she think it? Racist.

Her own parents, who taught her never to judge people by their colour but by their personality? Maybe that was it! They didn't like that Julius could work magic and actively did so! They weren't racist, they were scared of magic and worried for their only daughter, their only child. She had to call them and tell them that she understood them now. Ruby Kane has just had a breakthrough.


	5. Chapter 4

**A.N. Hey guys I am so sorry i haven't updated in so long. However, i think that this is a very good chapter, maybe even the best yet! So happy summer and enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Kane Chronicles and anything in bold.**

**CHAPTER STARTS HERE:**

**"Imprisoned with my Cat," Amos read.**

**[Give me the bloody mic.] Hullo. Sadie here. My brother's a rubbish storyteller. Sorry about that. But now you've got me, so all is well.**

"Well, she reminds me of someone….. some Kane or other…. Wait, it's coming to me…. Oh! It's all the Kanes!" laughed Desjardins. Usually he would get a rude retort from someone at this point but everyone was in such a good mood that they all just ;laughed along with him. Except Iskander.

"Mr. Desjardins' wand was once eaten by his pet alligator who started to choke so Mr. Desjardins proceeded to cry- crocodile tears." Commented Iskander.

This just made everyone laugh harder even the tomato faced Desjardins.

** Let's see. The explosion. Rosetta Stone in a billion pieces.**

Desjardins twitched but with one glance from Iskander didn't move.

** Fiery evil bloke. Dad boxed in a coffin. Creepy Frenchman**

"I resent that!" yelled Desjardins.

"I'm sure you do D" chuckled Amos.

"D?" everyone asked.

"Saying Desjardins the whole time takes too long" Amos shrugged.

**and Arab girl with the knife. Us passing out. Right. So when I woke up, the police were rushing about as you might expect. They separated me from my brother. I didn't really mind that part. He's a pain anyway.**

Julius bowed his head in regret that wasn't even his yet. Amos told him so but Julius could only offer a weak smile and stare off into space.

**But they locked me in the curator's for ages. And yes, they used our bicycle chain to do it. Cretins. **

Cue laughter from people reading.

Even Julius smiled, thinking about how Sadie had her mother's sense of humor.

**I was shattered, of course. I'd just been knocked out by a fiery whatever-it-was. I'd watch my dad get packed in a sarcophagus and shot through the floor.**

Julius and Amos winced. Julius was beginning to feel glad that Ruby wasn't there to hear about her youngest child.

** I tried to tell the police about all that, but did they care? No. Worst of all: I had a lingering chill, as if someone was pushing ice-cold needles into my back. It had started when I looked at those at those blue glowing words Dad had drawn on the Rosetta Stone and I knew what they meant. A family disease, perhaps? Can knowledge of boring Egyptian stuff be hereditary? **

Iskander chuckled quietly. Yes, he thought, she will balance out her brother.

**With my luck. Long after my gum had gone stale, a policewoman finally retrieved me from the curator's office. She asked me no questions. She just trundled me into a police car and** **took me home. Even then, I wasn't allowed to explain to Gran and Gramps. The policewoman just tossed me into my room and I waited. And waited. I don't like waiting.**

Julius thought of how that sounded like Amos. He never had any patience for anything.

**I paced the floor. My room was nothing posh, just an attic space with a window and a bed and a desk. There wasn't much to do.**

"Oh, I hate when that happens" said Amos.

"You hate when your Mother is killed by an obelisk so you live with your grandparents in London until your Father is trapped in a sarcophagus so the police don't trust you and lock you in your attic bedroom?" asked Aisha confused.

Amos blushed. "Well, not that exactly…"

** Muffin sniffed my legs and her tail puffed up** **like a bottlebrush. I suppose she doesn't fancy the smell of museums. She hissed and disappeared under the bed. **

"There is something, different, about…Muffin" commented Jamal. "That cannot be normal cat behavior".

"Why do you ask?" asked Amos. "Maybe English cats are different from Egyptian cats?"

Aisha looked confused. "But, Julius bought, Muffin, in America, did he not?"

"Touche, Senorita Pussycat, touché…"

**"Thanks a lot," I muttered. I opened the door, but the policewoman was standing guard. "The inspector will be with you in a moment," she told me. "Please stay inside."**

"Well where else is she going to go if they are keeping an eye on her?" asked Desjardins.

They all shrugged at him. Amos even offered him a" Dunno".

**I could see downstairs—just a glimpse of Gramps pacing the room, wringing his hands, while Carter and a police inspector talked on the sofa. I couldn't make out what they were saying. **

"I hate that too" said Amos.

"You hate-?" Aisha began before Jamal cut in.

"Please read" he begged.

**"Could I just use the loo?" I asked the nice officer. "No." She closed the door in my face. As if I might rig an explosion in the toilet. Honestly.**

"Well, if she's anything like her Uncle Amos…." Drawled Julius, finally shaking off his bad humor.

"ONE TIME"…..

"Now Julius, lest us not forget when tou first entered The Hall of Ages and you spilled your ice cream down your clothing" warned Iskander.

"Yes, Chief Lector" answered Julius, after which Iskander sighed.

**I dug out my iPod and scrolled through my playlist. Nothing struck me. I threw it on my bed in disgust. When I'm too distracted for music, that is a very sad thing.**

"Sounds like Ruby" said Amos.

Julius took back what he thought earlier and realized he was wrong. He wished Ruby were here so that she could learn all about their children before she….died….

** I wondered why Carter got to talk to the police first. "No, I'm fine," Sadie said in frustration. Did she mention that she hates it when Carter does things without effort? It wasn't fair.**

"Nothing ever seems fair at that age" said Aisha. She began remembering back to her own childhood.

**I fiddled with the necklace Dad had given me. I'd never been sure what the symbol meant. Carter's was obviously an eye, but mine looked a bit like an angel, or perhaps a killer alien robot.**

Everyone burst into laughter before Iskander cleared his throat and said.

"I suppose it does resemble a 'killer alien robot' in some ways".

**Why on earth had Dad asked if I still had it? Of course I still had it. It was the only gift he'd ever given me. Well, apart from Muffin, and with the cat's attitude, I'm not sure I would call her a proper gift.**

Julius looked down, he had been so excited about being a father but if this is the kind of job he'd be doing, maybe he should quit while he's ahead….

**Dad had practically abandoned me at age six, after all.**

"Now that is outrageous! There was a court battle young lady, obviously he didn't want to lose you! How dare you?!" reprimanded Aisha.

"Mrs. Rashid, you once ran stark naked through your village once, is that right?" asked Iskander.

You know the drill…

**The necklace was my one link to him. On good days I would stare at it and remember him fondly. On bad days (which were much more frequent) I would fling it across the room and stomp on it and curse him for not being around, which I found quite therapeutic. But in the end, I always put it back on.**

"It's like she's having some kind of affair with the necklace" said Amos.

"One minute she's like 'I love you necklace I will never ever leave you!' and then the next she's all like 'I hate you! How could you do this to me?".

"No Amos, that's the ending off all your relationships" retorted Julius.

**At any rate, during the weirdness at the museum—and I'm not making this up—the necklace got hotter. I nearly took it off, but I couldn't help wondering if it truly was protecting me somehow. **

"Desjardins, please start to take notes on all mysterious happenings in this book" requested Iskander.

"Yes, Iskander" replied Desjardins, getting quite a few odd, disapproving looks.

**I'll make things right, Dad had said, with that guilty look he often gives me. Well, colossal fail, Dad.**

Amos looked over at his brother, to see how he was dealing with the situation, only to find that he wasn't. So, being the best little brother that he is, he got up and sat next to Julius to give him some silent encouragement.

**What had he been thinking? I wanted to believe it had all been a bad dream: the glowing hieroglyphs, the snake staff, the coffin. Things like that simply don't happen. But I knew better.**

"She's learning" said Jamal.

**I couldn't dream anything as horrifying as that fiery man's face when he'd turned on us. "Soon, boy," he'd told Carter, as if he intended to track us down. Just the idea made me tremble. I also couldn't help wondering about our stop at Cleopatra's Needle, how Dad had insisted on seeing it, as if he were steeling his courage, as if what he did at the British Museum had something to do with my mum.**

Julius really, really needed Ruby right now. Only she could make him feel better… Amos tried to do his best though….

**My eyes wandered across my room and fixed on my desk. No, I thought. Not going to do it.**

"Not going to do what?" asked Aisha. "What is she going to do?"

**But I walked over and opened the drawer. I shoved aside a few old mags, my stash of sweets, a stack of maths homework I'd forgotten to hand in**

Julius head snapped up.

**, and a few pictures of me and my mates Liz and Emma trying on ridiculous hats in Camden Market.**

"Sounds like what Ruby would do" laughed Julius.

Amos looked at him, glad to see his brother reverting back to his old self again.

**And there at the bottom of it all was the picture of Mum. Gran and Gramps had loads of pictures. They keep a shrine to Ruby in the hall cupboard—**

Julius closed back up into himself, how could he nearly forget hat Ruby was dead in the future? He was an awful father and husband.

**Mum's childhood artwork, her O-level results, her graduation picture from university, her favorite jewelry. It's quite mental. I was determined not to be like them, living in the past. I barely remembered Mum, after all, and nothing could change the fact she was dead.**

Aisha sobbed and turned in to her husband for comfort. "That's so sad…"

Everyone bowed their heads in respect to Ruby, with her not being with them it really felt as though she were gone.

**But I did keep the one picture. It was of Mum and me at our house in Los Angeles, just after I was born. She stood out on the balcony, the Pacific Ocean behind her, holding a wrinkled pudgy lump of baby that would some day grow up to be yours truly. Baby me** **was not much to look at, but Mum was gorgeous, **

"Yes, she is" agreed Julius. "Ruby is the beautiful being I have ever had the pleasure of meeting".

"And reproducing with!" chimed in Amos.

"Amos!" Julius yelled and hit him on the head with his wand.

"Huh, I guess it does work as more than a wand…"

**even in shorts and a** **tattered T-shirt. Her eyes were deep blue. Her blond hair was clipped back. Her skin was perfect. Quite depressing compared to mine.**

"I am sure she is as radiant as her mother, Julius" said Iskander.

"Thank you, sir" Julius replied, sad that his daughter didn't realize her own beauty and self-worth.

** People always say I look like her, but I couldn't even get the spot off my chin much less look so mature and beautiful.** **[Stop smirking, Carter.]**

"Haha, Carter reminds me of someone" Amos commented cheekily, turning to face his brother.

"Who?" asked Julius, looking around cluelessly. "You?"

**The photo fascinated me because I hardly remembered our lives together at all. But the main reason I'd kept the photo was because of the symbol on Mum's T-shirt: one of those life symbols—an ankh.**

"It's her favorite symbol, she believes that it influences the value of your life" whispered Julius.

**My dead mother wearing the symbol for life. Nothing could've been sadder.**

"That poor child" whispered Aisha. "Imagining have to see that, in her only picture of her mother that she owns. Having to see that every day….

"Ssh, love" comforted Jamal. "I'm sure it all works it self out. Life often has a funny way of making things right".

"How right you are, Mr. Rashid" agreed Iskander, complimenting Jamal on his wise words of comfort towards his wife. Jamal bowed his head in respect to the Chief Lector.

**But she smiled at the camera as if she knew a secret. As if my dad and she were sharing a private joke. **

"I hate when you guys do that" muttered Amos.

"That's only because they're usually about you!" chuckled Julius. "And your odd sense of dress…" he added.

Amos ignored the jab because he was just glad to see his older brother smiling again. It's like, you take away Ruby and he acts like a man who had never even heard of the sun, forget about seeing it.

**Something tugged at the back of my mind. That stocky man in the trench coat**

"Stocky?!" protested Amos. "I am NOT STOCKY!"

Julius and Desjardins guffawed.

Aisha and Jamal eventually joined in while Iskander looked on in amusement, a smile dancing across his lips. Amos soon realized how ridiculous he must look and joined in. The atmosphere was much lighter after that, everyone needed something to take their minds off what was soon to be happening.

**who'd been arguing with Dad across the street—he'd said something about the Per Ankh. Had he meant ankh as in the symbol for life, and if so, what was a per? I supposed he didn't mean pear as in the fruit.**

"What does she mean 'as in the fruit' is their some other kind of pear?" questioned Aisha.

"Well" began Amos. "She could, possibly, and this is just a hunch now, a mere suggestion, a simple thought which found itself drifting across my mind-"

"The barren and dry wasteland of your mind?" suggested Julius, holding back a smile at his brother's antics which seemed to only be confusing Aisha even more.

"Yes" agreed Amos. "The barren and—HEY!"

"Sadly, that realization seemed to take a while" snickered Desjardins.

**I had an eerie feeling that if I saw the words Per Ankh written in hieroglyphs, I would know what they meant. **

"Try it!" encouraged Amos.

**I put down the picture of Mum. I picked up a pencil **

"Yes!"

**and turned over one of my old homework papers. **

"YES!"

**I wondered what happen if I tried to draw the words Per Ankh. **

"Try it!" urged Amos.

**Would the right design just occur to me? As I touched pencil to paper, my bedroom door opened. "Miss Kane?"**

"Ah, no that just-"

"SHUT IT AMOS!"

**I whirled and dropped the pencil. A police inspector stood frowning in my doorway. "What are you doing?" "Maths," I said.**

"Well, she's a better liar than you are Julie!" chattered Amos.

"I mean you are desperate! I remember this one time-!"

"Mr. Kane here," began Iskander, gesturing towards Amos. "Used to go to the same coffee shop everyday for lunch until they closed to get work done for two months. When they opened again he went to go eat his lunch. Upon arrival he looked to where the door used to be and found glass. Realising that it was a glass door, with no handle, he assumed it was automatic and walked into it, thinking it wasn't working he walked into it again, three times. He then decided that he was no longer hungry and returned home.

**My ceiling was quite low, so the inspector had to stoop to come in. He wore a lint-colored suit that matched his gray hair and his ashen face. "Now then, Sadie. I'm Chief Inspector Williams. Let's have a chat, shall we? Sit down." I didn't sit, and neither did he, which must've annoyed him. It's hard to look in charge when you're hunched over like Quasimodo.**

"Who's Quasimodo?" asked Aisha, scrunching her eyebrows in confusion.

"Well….." began Amos, dragging the word out.

"He's a hunchback in an animated movie for young children" cut in Desjardins, shooting Amos an unamused look.

"Ohhhh"

**"Tell me everything, please," he said, "from the time your father came round to get you." So I told him everything. Why not? His left eyebrow crept higher and higher as I told him the strange bits like the glowing letters and serpent staff. "Well, Sadie," Inspector Williams said. "You've got quite an imagination." "I'm not lying, Inspector. And I think your eyebrow is trying to escape."**

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"Julius, are you sure she's yours? 'Cuz I think she may be just a little too funny to be your kid?" asked Amos.

"Haha Amos, so funny!" Julius retorted sarcastically.

They were about to start reading again when Aisha asked. "But was not that not rude?"

**He tried to look at his eyebrows, then scowled. "Now, Sadie, I'm sure this is very hard on you. I understand you want to protect your father's reputation. But he's gone now—"**

This made Julius choke up and go back to his wallowing in despair.

**"You mean through the floor in a coffin," I insisted. "He's not dead."**

Oh Sadie, his little girl, there he was off being the worst father ever heard off and yet there she was defending him.

**Inspector Williams spread his hands. "Sadie, I'm very sorry. But we must find out why he did this act of... well..."**

"Violence!"

"Insanity!"

"Craziness!"

"Loopiness!"

"Mentalness!"

"C.B.B. Syndrome!"

"C.B.B. Syndrome? What on earth are you talking about Amos?" asked Julius, confused.

"Crazy Big Brother Syndrome of course!" cracked Amos.

"Oh shut up you!" cried Julius.

**"Act of what?" He cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Your father destroyed priceless artifacts and apparently killed himself in the process. We'd very much like to know why." I stared at him. "Are you saying my father's a terrorist? Are you mad?"**

That accusation really got to Jamal. "I like to think that I have used every possible insult there is. However, I have never been so cold-hearted, ignorant nor rude enough to call someone a terrorist. It would be the biggest offense I could ever so much as dream of placing on another man, woman or child in all my days. I am truly appalled and shocked at the behavior of an officer of the law, I wouldn't expect such behavior from an actual terrorist!"

"Wow, thank you Jamal" thanked a shocked Julius.

"Oh don't thank me Julius, I am just expressing my opinion on how Americans and British people fling words around without realising their actual worth."

So Julius shot Jamal a meaningful look and whispered his appreciation again.

**"We've made calls to some of your father's associates. I understand his behavior had become erratic since your mother's death. He'd become withdrawn and obsessive in his studies, spending more and more time in Egypt—" "He's a bloody Egyptologist! **

"You have to admit that she does have a point there officer" commented Aisha quietly.

That left Iskander thinking about the Arab woman. She seemed to be well disciplined lady with a strong sense of right and wrong and personality. Now if only she had her husband's courage. She would go far. Perhaps their daughter…

**You should be looking for him, not asking stupid questions!" "Sadie," he said, and I could hear in his voice that he was resisting the urge to strangle me. Strangely, I get this a lot from adults.**

"Hmm, how odd" muttered Desjardins.

**"There are extremist groups in Egypt that object to Egyptian artifacts being kept in other countries' museums. These people might have approached your father. Perhaps in his state, your father became an easy target for them. If you've heard him mention any names—"**

"They're questioning her while she is grieving still?" asked Jamal.

"Forget about still. Most people in her position would be hysterical" responded Aisha.

"The Rashids here are very involved in promoting children's rights back in their country "explained Iskander.

Everyone looked at the Rashids with new found respect.

**I stormed past him to the window. I was so angry I could hardly think. I refused to believe Dad was dead. No, no, no. And a terrorist? Please. Why did adults have to be so thick? They always say "tell the truth," and when you do, they don't believe you. What's the point? I stared down at the dark street. Suddenly that cold tingly feeling got worse than ever. I focused on the dead tree where I'd met Dad earlier. Standing there now, in the dim light of a streetlamp, looking up at me, was the pudgy bloke in the black trench coat and the round glasses and the fedora—the man Dad had called Amos.**

"And I have re entered the story!" cheered Amos.

**I suppose I should've felt threatened by an odd man staring up at me in the dark of night. But his expression was full of concern. And he looked so familiar. It was driving me mad that I couldn't remember why.**

"She does seem rather forgetful" commeted Desjardins.

"She's suffering from R.P.M.O.W.U." answered Julius.

"Huh?" was the general response.

"Repressing painful memories of weird uncles" explained Julius.

**Behind me, the inspector cleared his throat. "Sadie, no one blames you for the attack on the museum. We understand you were dragged into this against your will." I turned from the window. "Against my will? I chained the curator in his office."**

"She seems very proud of that fact" said Jamal.

**The inspector's eyebrow started creep up again. "Be that as it may, surely you didn't understand what your father meant to do. Possibly your brother was involved?" I snorted. "Carter? Please." "So you are determined to protect him as well. You consider him a proper brother, do you?"**

"WHAT IS THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN?!" roared Julius.

Everyone jumped, expecting him to just get even more depressed until Ruby came back and brought him back to normal.

"Is it because he's a different skin color?! That is so unfair and RACIST I don't even know where to start!" he fumed. "Excuse me".

Julius left leaving everybody else thunderstruck.

**I couldn't believe it. I wanted to smack his face. "What's that supposed to mean? Because he doesn't look like me?"** **The inspector blinked. "I only meant—"** **"I know what you meant. Of course he's my brother!"**

"Looks like young Sadie has her father's temper" said Iskander.

"It would appear so" agreed Desjardins and Jamal.

**Inspector Williams held up his hands apologetically, but I was still seething. As much as Carter annoyed me, I hated it when people assumed we weren't related, or looked at my father askance when he said the three of us were a family—like we'd done something wrong. Stupid Dr. Mater at the museum. Inspector Williams. It happened every time Dad and Carter and I were together. Every bloody time.**

"That is so sad" whispered Aisha, tears beginning to build up in her eyes.

"No matter how hard people try there will always be those who alienate people who are different from them or what they are used to" advised Iskander. "All we can do is continue on trying to be as open minded as we can and to accept everybody as they are."

**"I'm sorry, Sadie," the inspector said. "I only want to make sure we separate the innocent from the guilty. It will go much easier for everyone if you cooperate. Any information. Anything your father said, people he might've mentioned." "Amos," I blurted out, just to see his reaction. "He met a man named Amos." Inspector Williams sighed. "Sadie, he couldn't have done. Surely you know that. We spoke with Amos not one hour ago, on the phone from his home in New York."**

Desjardins turned to Amos with begrudging respect. "You're good."

"Yes, I like to think so" agreed Amos smugly.

**"He isn't in New York!" I insisted. "He's right—" I glanced out the window and Amos was gone. Bloody typical. "That's not possible," I said. "Exactly," the inspector said. "But he was here!" I exclaimed. "Who is he? One of Dad's colleagues? How did you know to call him?"**

"I am hurt" pouted Amos, but no one paid him any attention.

**"Really, Sadie. This acting must stop." "Acting?" The inspector studied me for a moment, then set his jaw as if he'd made a decision. Sadie sighed and plunge her fingers to her ears. There was going to be a lot of yelling after this. "We've already had the truth from Carter. I didn't want to upset you, but he told us everything. He understands there's no point protecting your father now. You might as well help us, and there will be no charges against you."**

"This is exactly why my wife and I are working towards better care taken towards matters that involve children. Sometimes, adults forget what it is like to be a child, how much more intense feelings are. Hatred and love both "Jamal ranted. "This behavior is unforgivable.

**"You shouldn't lie to children!" I yelled, hoping my voice carried all the way downstairs. "Carter would never say a word against Dad, and neither will I!" The inspector didn't even have the decency to look embarrassed.**

"Unforgivable" agreed Aisha silently.

**He crossed his arms. "I'm sorry you feel that way, Sadie. I'm afraid it's time we went downstairs... to discuss consequences with your grandparents."**


	6. Ruby Returns

**_A.N.: Hey everybody reading this note! I have started this chapter on the 19_****_th_****_ of June so lets see how long it takes me before I update!_**

**_DISCLAIMER: I own the Kane Chronicles! Just Kidding! I am not Mr. Riordan therefore I do not own the Kane Chronicles._**

"Hey everybody! I'm back and take a look who I've brought with me!" exclaimed Ruby as she re-joined everyone for the reading bringing two guests with her. "These are my parents; Catherine and Robert Faust. (Catherine is Mrs. Faust's actual name however there is no name for Mr. Faust so Robert shall do!)

Julius walked hesitantly towards Ruby and her parents. "Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Faust, how are you both?" he asked shaking their hands and kissing Ruby on her cheek.

"Hello Julius" greeted Robert. "My wife, Catherine, and I am here to explain to you the reasoning behind our forced distance towards you and ask for your forgiveness".

Amos leaned over to Desjardins and whispered." You could cut the tension in the atmosphere with a spork!"

"What's a spork?" asked a confused Desjardins.

"It's a plastic combination of both fork and spoon" explained Amos, still whispering.

"Well why couldn't you just say that?!" asked Desjardins raising his voice which in turn caused Amos to abandon his attempt at whispering at yelling back to him.

Mrs. Faust turned to Ruby and asked. "Should you not stop those two?" and pointed to where Desjardins were having an argument with lots of actions which probably meant that Desjardins was slipping into French.

"Nah, their always doing that" Ruby brushed off the incident with a wave of her hand. "Now though you two" she pointed at her parents" are going to apologize to Julius."

"Perhaps we should give you some privacy" suggested Iskander. "Aisha, Jamal and Desjardins come with me and we shall go have our lunch".

"Yes, Iskander" the above mentioned followed him out of the room.

Everybody sat down before the inevitable conversation began.

"First off Julius you have to understand that Ruby is our only child and little girl. We would do anything to protect her, against anyone. So when the time came for Ruby to decide whether or not to be a magician we were worried. We didn't want her to lead the dangerous life of a magician of the House of Life" began Catherine.

"The night before her decision she came into me and asked 'Daddy, you're not a magician are you?' and I told her that I wasn't, that I was a rugby player, but then she said. "I don't want to be a rugby player Daddy. But if you're a rugby player doesn't that mean I have to be one too?' and when I explained to her that she could be anything she wanted she looked me in the eye and said. 'Even if it makes you sad?'" continued Robert.

"Ruby has always known what she wanted but when she came home time and time again, injured because of being a magician, I hated it. I hated magic. I hated everything to do with it. So when she came home one day with you by her side, I thought that she may have found someone. That she would quit magic and settle down for a life in the suburbs with children. But then I found out that you were a magician. Strike One. Then that you were from a long family of magicians. Strike Two. But the last strike was when you convinced Ruby that she could still be a magician after you two married and that she could lead a Nome with you until her dying day. Strike Three. I just couldn't believe that you were allowing her to go out there every day and risk her life without any recognition. I hated you then too and everything to do with you" finished Catherine.

Ruby cleared her throat and shot her parents a meaningful look.

"We hope you can forgive us for judging you wrongly" apologized Robert.

"Well, that was positively touching!" exclaimed Amos bounding over to wrap his arms around the Fausts. "Group hug!"

"You know what Amos, that's a great idea but I think we should get some lunch" suggested Ruby.


	7. Chapter 5 (I think?)

**_A.N.: Ok I just want to thank everyone who has reviewed, followed and favourited my story! You guys are the best and I am so glad that you are enjoying my little story. It's the summer now so hopefully I'll be able to update more often but I am still going to be working Monday to Friday so some slack would be nice even though you guys are so nice about my random updates!_**

**_P.S. Was just on my holidays for the past 2 weeks, so really really sorry about that!_**

**_DISCLAIMER: I do NOT own The Kane Chronicles._**

**_THIS CHAPTER STARTS HERE…._**

After lunch everyone gathered together to read again, this time joined by the Fausts.

"I would like to read" announced Ruby, picking up the book and going to sit beside her husband.

**"Kidnapped by a Not-So-Stranger," Ruby read.**

"How can you be kidnapped by stranger who's not a stranger?" asked Robert. "That's a preposterous chapter title and reasoning."

"Well, these books are by your grandchildren, emphasis on CHILDREN" reasoned Desjardins.

"Yes, we know that, thank you" retorted Robert. " I can't actually wait to hear about them."

Julius and Amos looked at him incredulously.

**I just love family meetings. Very cozy, with the Christmas garlands round the fireplace and a nice pot of tea and a detective from Scotland Yard ready to arrest.**

This led Aisha and Catherine to having a very boring conversation about family gatherings. Well, not completely boring…

"Well my family gatherings aren't exactly normal. I remember one time back when I was a little girl and all my uncles had come over on Halloween. They all decided to come over dressed up as drag queens and then ended up having a fight over who made the most attractive woman" recalled Aisha.

She received some strange looks for that.

**Carter slumped on the sofa, cradling Dad's workbag. I wondered why the police had let him keep it. It should have been evidence or something, but the inspector didn't seem to notice it at all.**

"Hmm, how odd…" muttered Iskander.

"How could they not realize that the boy held important evidence?" questioned Robert.

He didn't get an answer, no ne knew, but he didn't know that.

**Carter looked awful—I mean even worse than usual.**

"Well, if he looks like Julius…." Joked Amos.

"Oh shut up, Amos!" reprimanded Ruby.

Ruby herself was then reprimanded by her mother. "Ruby! Language!"

**Honestly, the boy had never been in a proper school**

"What?! You never brought that grandson of mine to a school? I know that he travelled the world with his father since he was eight but he was eight and he never went to school?!" asked Catherine. "And you two being the geniuses that you both are? I am ashamed."

"I am not sure of what happened in the future before the point in time that we are reading about Mum, we don't know why Carter never went to school" explained Ruby.

**, and he dressed like a junior professor, with his khaki trousers and a button-down shirt and loafers.**

Julius looked down at what he was wearing and back up again while Amos, Desjardins and now Robert began snickering.

** He's not bad looking, I suppose.**

Julius sat up straighter while Amos imitated him behind his back.

**He's reasonably tall and fit and his hair isn't hopeless. He's got Dad's eyes, and my mates Liz and Emma have even told me from his picture that he's hot,**

"Ooh! Sadie's friends like Carter!" squealed Ruby, suddenly back to a girly girl. Julius really can't keep up with all her mood swings; girly, sad, in control, tomboy. But he still smailed back at her when she clapped her hands in delight and looked up to him.

**which I must take with a grain of salt because (a) he's my brother, **

"Understandable" agreed Amos. " I will never be able to think of Julius that way."

"I'm extremely glad to hear that, Amos" said Julius, flashing his brother his most charming smile.

" I sure hope not" muttered Ruby.

Oh great, thought Julius, now she's in her jealous mood.

** and (b) my mates are a bit crazed.** **When it came to clothes, Carter wouldn't have known hot if it bit him on the bum.**

"Sadie Catherine Kane! Language!" reprimanded Catherine.

"Sadie Catherine?" asked Ruby. "What makes you think that I would make your name my daughter's middle name?"

"I am her grandmother" replied Catherine as if that answered everything.

"Well, just for that I'm going to make her middle name….. Lilianna" announced Ruby. "Her paternal grandmother's name".

Julius knew that Ruby was probably only doing this because she wanted to show her mother that she was a fully grown woman and could make her own decisions but he was still touched that she thought oh his mother who died only 4 months ago.

"Bum isn't even a swear word..." muttered Robert, confused.

**[Oh, don't look at me like that, Carter. You know it's true.] At any rate, I shouldn't have been too hard on him. He was taking Dad's disappearance even worse than I was.**

"Oh my poor baby…" cried Ruby, cuddling into Julius chest.

"What?" mouthed Amos to Julius.

"Hormones" he mouthed back, causing Amos to nod his head in understanding.

"I know your both whispering about me" said Ruby, looking up to meet Julius eyes.

"What? No…no, no," disagreed Julius, shaking his head.

He had to stay strong for everybody…..even if he was the world's worst father of all time.

**Gran and Gramps sat on either side of him, looking quite nervous. The pot of tea and a plate of biscuits sat on the table, but no one was having any. **

Catherine frowned but Robert, quickly realising what she was about to ask and not having the heart to lie to his wife gestured to Ruby to just keep on reading.

**Chief Inspector Williams ordered me into the only free chair. Then he paced in front of the fireplace importantly. **

"Because we all look so important when we pace in front of fireplaces" drawled Amos sarcastically.

**Two more police stood by the front door—the woman from earlier and a big bloke who kept eyeing the biscuits.**

Catherine smiled, glad that _someone_ appreciated her biscuits.

**"Mr. and Mrs. Faust," Inspector Williams said, "I'm afraid we have two uncooperative children." Gran fidgeted with the trim of her dress. It's hard to believe she's related to Mum. Gran is frail and colorless, like a stick person really, while Mum in the photos always looked so happy and full of life.**

**Catherine frowned, turned to her husband for comfort as tears gathered in her eyes.**

"I'm not colorless, am I?" she asked him, thoroughly upset.

Meanwhile, Julius was silently cursing the fact that his daughter had unluckily inherited his way of thinking blunt, rude things about the way he saw people simply because no one could stop him.

**"They're just children," she managed. "Surely you can blame them." "Pah!" Gramps said. "This is ridiculous, Inspector. They aren't responsible!"**

"Thank you for trying to sway the detectives into believing that they were innocent Mum, Dad" thanked Ruby quietly, upset with herself about getting so angry at her mother.

"Thank you" echoed Julius.

"It's so good to see that you are all finally getting along well together!" cheered Iskander happily. "Family should be united not divided".

**Gramps is a former rugby player.**

"What is rugby?" asked a slightly confused Jamal, he had become used to not knowing some of the terms used in this book.

"What is rugby?!" echoed Robert, astounded. "Only the single greatest sport ever known to mankind! I'll have to explain it all to you later!"

Ruby shook her head and caught her mother doing the same. Dad could talk about rugby every second of every day forever, she thought.

**He has beefy arms, a belly much too big for his shirt, and eyes sunk deep in his face, as if someone had punched them**

"No they're not!" Robert protested.

Everyone looked at him, he was right. Where was Sadie getting all these ideas from?

Julius chuckled, he remembered daydreaming about punching him…

** (well, actually Dad had punched them years ago, but that's another story).**

All eyes turned to Julius who just smiled and looked away, creeping everyone out before quietly whispering an apology to Robert. He didn't want Amos t think that he was a pushover.

**Gramps is quite scary looking. Usually people got out of his way, but Inspector Williams didn't seem impressed. "Mr. Faust," he said, "what do you imagine the morning headlines will read? 'British Museum attacked. Rosetta Stone destroyed.' Your son-in-law—" "Former son-in-law," Gramps corrected.**

Robert also mouthed his apology to Julius. He can't be seen as a man who didn't know where his loyalties lie. He had seen the movies involving secret organizations, the guy who didn't know what to choose always died. Always.

**"—was most likely vaporized in the explosion, or he ran off, in which case—" "He didn't run off!" I shouted. "We need to know where he is," the inspector continued. "And the only witnesses, your grandchildren, refuse to tell me the truth."**

"Actually officer they are telling you the truth you just do not believe them because they're children!" retorted a seemingly fired up Aisha.

"She fights for children's rights" explained Amos to the Fausts, not taking his eyes off Aisha in case she turned on him for some, yet unknown, reason.

**"We did tell you the truth," Carter said. "Dad isn't dead. He sank through the floor."** **Inspector Williams glanced at Gramps, as if to say, There, you see? Then he turned to Carter. "Young man, your father has committed a criminal act. He's left you behind to deal with the consequences—"**

Doubts about what kind of parent he would be began running rampage through Julius' mind. Well, not really _running_. They were more, skateboarding through his mind and doing 180s.

**"That's not true!" I snapped, my voice trembling with rage. I couldn't believe Dad would intentionally leave us at the mercy of police, of course. But the idea of him abandoning me—well, as I might have mentioned, that's a bit of a sore point.**

Ruby began worrying about Julius. He seemed to be taking all of the kids negative comments to heart. I mean, sure this is what happens in the future but, they can change it now. For the better. She'll have to talk to him about it later.

**"Dear, please," Gran told me, "the inspector is only doing his job." "Badly!" I said.**

**"Really Ruby, you ought to have taught this girl better manners", reprimanded Catherine, she shook her head at her daughter. **

**"Oh mother…" said Ruby. **

Oh great, thought Julius. Here comes misunderstood teenager mood.

**"Let's all have some tea," Gran suggested.**

"Your stupid tea..." muttered Ruby.

**"No!" Carter and I yelled at once, which made me feel bad for Gran,** **as she practically wilted into the sofa.**

Catherine seemed offended at being portrayed as such a weak character. Ruby's death must have really affected her. Wait, what was she saying? Of course Ruby's death affected her! Sure she doesn't see her often but she still loved her very much so Ruby's death would have really devastated her.

**"We can charge you," the inspector warned, turning on me. "We can and we will—" He froze. Then he blinked several times, as if he'd forgotten what he was doing.**

"Ooh! Someone's busting out the magic!" said Amos.

"Don't go all gangster on me Amos" pleaded Julius. "It just doesn't suit you, it scares me."

**Gramps frowned. "Er, Inspector?" "Yes..." Chief Inspector Williams murmured dreamily. He reached in his pocket and took out a little blue booklet—an American passport. He threw it in Carter's lap.**

"Okay…."

**"You're being deported," the inspector announced. "You're to leave the country within twenty-four hours. If we need to question you further, you'll be contacted through the FBI."**

"My grandson is going to be deported?" asked Robert, baffled. How could this possibly happen? They were just a normal, hard-working, English family. That was until his daughter decided to be a magician, and then married a magician, and got pregnant with a magician.

**Carter's mouth fell open. He looked at me, and I knew I wasn't imagining how odd this was. The inspector had completely changed direction. He'd been about to arrest us. I was sure of it. And then out of the blue, he was deporting Carter? Even the other police officers looked confused.**

Aisha started to giggle. He was so confused, both of them were, or, will be…

**"Sir?" the policewoman asked. "Are you sure—" "Quiet, Linley. The two of you may go."**

"Ooh, that's a nice name!" interrupted Aisha. "We should add that to the list Jamal! After all, we've only got a month and a half left!"

"Really?" asked Ruby excitedly. "I've only got 2 more months! We should so schedule a play date for Carter and your daughter!"

"Ooh! Definitely!"

**The cops hesitated until Williams made a shooing motion with his hand. Then they left, closing the door behind them. "Hold on," Carter said. "My father's disappeared, and you want me to leave the country?" "Your father is either dead or a fugitive, son," the inspector said. "Deportation is the kindest option. It's already been arranged.""With whom?" Gramps demanded. "Who authorized this?"**

"Thanks for caring so much Robert" said Julius, nodding at Robert.

"Well, he is my only grandson" replied Robert, which was his own way of saying "your welcome".

**"With..." The inspector got that funny blank look again. "With the proper authorities. Believe me, it's better than prison." Carter looked too devastated to speak, but before I could feel sorry for him, Inspector Williams turned to me. "You, too, miss." He might as well have hit me with a sledgehammer.**

"How?" asked Desjardins. "She is American or is she not? Surely she should be glad to be going home?"

"Ah, but what if it is no longer home to her?" questioned Jamal. "She has lived in London since she was 6 years of age. She is used to London, it is her home."

**"You're deporting me?" I asked. "I live here!"**

"See?"

**"You're an American citizen. And under the circumstances, it's best for you to return home."**

"See?"

"Oh don't you two start!"

**I just stared at him. I couldn't remember any home except this flat. My mates at school, my room, everything I knew was here. "Where am I supposed to go?" **

"She has a point" said Ruby. "She has lived these past few years with Mum and Carter travelled everywhere with Julius. Where would they go?"

"With me of course!" exclaimed Amos, throwing his hands up in the air and flashing her a charming smile.

"Over my dead body!" joked Ruby, forgetting about how true that statement was and then pretending that she didn't notice her mistake.

**"Inspector," Gran said, her voice trembling. "This isn't fair. I can't believe—" "I'll give you some time to say good-bye," the inspector interrupted. Then he frowned as if baffled by his own actions. "I—I must be going." This made no sense, and the inspector seemed to realize it, but he walked to the front door anyway. When he opened it, I almost jumped out of my chair, because the man in black, Amos, was standing there. **

"Amos, what are you doing scaring Sadie?" Amos asked himself.

"Well Amos, I believe I am there to save Sadie and Carter from the annoyance known as the law" Amos answered himself.

"I always knew he was different" interrupted Julius, fake crying into a tissue. " But now he really has gone round the bend." And with that he twirled his finger in a circle beside his head as if to prove his point.

Amos shot Julius a pointed glare but sat back in his chair with a huff.

**He'd lost his trench coat and hat somewhere, but was still wearing the same pinstripe suit and round glasses. His braided hair glittered with gold beads.**

"And I make it look damn fashionable!"

"Shut up Amos!"

"Yes Ruby!"

"Ugh!"

**I thought the inspector would say something, or express surprise, but he didn't even acknowledge Amos. He walked right past him and into the night.**

"Well, he is forgettable…" trailed off Desjardins.

"Hey!" pouted Amos.

**Amos came inside and closed the door. Gran and Gramps stood up. "You," Gramps growled. "I should've known. If I was younger, I would beat you to a pulp."**

"Why would you say that?" asked Jamal. "That's no way to treat your daughter's brother-in-law".

"The Kanes and myself used to not get along quite so well" explained Robert tightly.

"Hmm….." said Jamal.

**"Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Faust," Amos said. He looked at Carter and me as if we were problems to be solved. "It's time we had a talk."**

"Ooh, I'm going for the mysterious approach!"

( A.N. You can guess who said that can't you? Honestly, I'd be kind of disappointed if you couldn't.)

**Amos made himself right at home. He flopped onto the sofa and poured himself tea. He munched on a biscuit, which was quite dangerous, because Gran's biscuits are horrid.**

"My biscuits aren't horrid are they?" asked Catherine, looking around at everyone.

"I've never had one" said Jamal.

"Me neither" said Aisha.

"Or me".

"Nor me."

Catherine looked over at Robert, Ruby, Julius and Amos waiting for an answer.

"Em, why don't we all continue on with the story?" proposed Ruby.

Needless to say, everyone agreed.

**I thought Gramps's head would explode. His face went bright red. He came up behind Amos and raised his hand as if he were about to smack him, but Amos kept munching his biscuits. "Please, sit down," he told us.**

"Then again" started Jamal. "Maybe it isn't quite so questionable.."

**And we all sat. It was the strangest thing—as if we'd been waiting for his order. Even Gramps dropped his hand and moved round the sofa. He sat next to Amos with a disgusted sigh.**

Robert huffed.

**Amos sipped his tea and regarded me with some displeasure. That wasn't fair, I thought. I didn't look that bad, considering what we'd been through. Then he looked at Carter and grunted.**

"Well, that's nice…." Said Aisha, looking at Amos warily.

"Hey! I am harmless Aisha, don't worry!" said an offended Amos.

**"Terrible timing," he muttered. "But there's no other way. They'll have to come with me." "Excuse me?" I said. "I'm not going anywhere with some strange man with biscuit on his face!"**

*Insert laughter here*

**He did in fact have biscuit crumbs on his face, but he apparently didn't care, as he didn't bother to check.**

**"**Well that's not very hygienic!" said Catherine giving Amos a _pointed _glare which he then _pointedly_ ignored**.**

**"I'm no stranger, Sadie," he said. "Don't you remember?" It was creepy hearing him talk to me in such a familiar way. I felt like I should know him. I looked at Carter, but he seemed just as mystified as I was.**

"Ha! You are forgettable!" teased Desjardins. "I on the other hand…"

"Yes, I must agree with you Mr. Jesarins" agreed Aisha, but not without sending Amos a wink to let him know that she was secretly on his side.

"Well, eh, thank you Aisha, and please, call me Michel".

**"No, Amos," Gran said, trembling. "You can't take Sadie. We had an agreement."**

"And you should have said…." Started Ruby, looking directly at her mother and father.

"You can't take Sadie and Carter" they droned lifelessly as if this was something that they had drilled into them so many times that they know off heart and understand but are still forced to practice.

Like maths, or geography, or science.

**"Julius broke that agreement tonight," Amos said. "You know you can't care for Sadie anymore—not after what's happened. Their only chance is to come with me." "Why should we go anywhere with you?" Carter asked. "You almost got in a fight with Dad!"**

"He has a _point_", _pointed_ out Jamal.

I really have no idea where all the point related words are coming from, so don't ask.

**Amos looked at the workbag in Carter's lap. "I see you kept your father's bag. That's good. You'll need it. As for getting into fights, Julius and I did that quite a lot.** **If you didn't notice, Carter, I was trying to stop him from doing something rash. If he'd listened to me, we wouldn't be in this situation."**

"Ooooooohhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"

"Amos here happens to be wearing Pink Panther underwear" said Iskander, unexpectedly.

"I…..I….I…..have nothing to say".

**I had no idea what he was on about, but Gramps apparently understood. "You and your superstitions!" he said. "I told you we want none of it."**

"I take that back, I was wrong".

"Thanks Dad".

Ah, back to normal Ruby, Julius loves normal Ruby.

**Amos pointed to the back patio. Through the glass doors, you could see the lights shining on the Thames. It was quite a nice view at night, when you couldn't notice how run-down some of the buildings were. "Superstition, is it?" Amos asked. "And yet you found a place to live on the east bank of the river." Gramps turned even redder. "That was Ruby's idea. Thought it would protect us.**

"I'm glad you both decided to listen to me on this" said Ruby.

**But she was wrong about many things, wasn't she? She trusted Julius and you, for one!" Amos looked unfazed. He smelled interesting**

"Well, that's… different" commented Amos.

No one else dare comment.

**like old-timey spices, copal and amber, like the incense shops in Convent Garden.**

"Ahhhhhhh" collective realization.

**He finished his tea and looked straight at Gran. "Mrs. Faust, you know what's begun. The police are the least of your worries." Gran swallowed. "You... you changed that inspector's mind. You made him deport Sadie." "It was that or see the children arrested," Amos said. "Hang on," I said. "You changed Inspector Williams's mind? How?" Amos shrugged. "It's not permanent. In fact we should get to New York in the next hour or so before Inspector Williams begins to wonder why he let you go." **

"Oh you're not going to be taking Dad's boat?" asked Julius incredulously.

"Well how else is future me going to get to New York in an hour?" replied Amos.

"Portal?" said Julius, in a duh! Voice.

"Oh you know I'm awful at those!"

"Boys! Why don't you both continue this later?" suggested Ruby.

"Yeah sure"

"K"

**Carter laughed incredulously. "You can't get to New York from London in a hour. Not even the fastest plane—" "No," Amos agreed. "Not a plane." He turned back to Gran as if everything had been settled. "Mrs. Faust, Carter and Sadie have only one safe option. You know that. They'll come to the mansion in Brooklyn. I can protect them there." "You've got a mansion," Carter said. "In Brooklyn." Amos gave him an amused smile. "The family mansion. You'll be safe there." "But our dad—" "Is beyond your help for now," Amos said sadly. "I'm sorry, Carter. I'll explain later, but Julius would want you to be safe. For that, we must move quickly. I'm afraid I'm all you've got." **

"Well he'll have Robert and I from now on" said Catherine. She was determined to change this future, she would be there for her grandson, no matter who he looked like.

**That was a bit harsh, I thought. Carter looked at Gran and Gramps. Then he nodded glumly. He knew that they didn't want him around. He'd always reminded them of our dad. And yes, it was a stupid reason not to take in your grandson, but there you are. **

Julius put an arm around Ruby to comfort her. "This is all in the past" he said. "Even if it's in the future!"

This made Ruby giggle, so _some _people (Amos and Desjardins) began to wonder what the pair were whispering about. Hey! They are newly weds! Kinda…..

**Well, Carter can do what he wants," I said. "But I live here. And I'm not going off with some stranger, am I?" I looked at Gran for support, but she was staring at the lace doilies on the table as if they were suddenly quite interesting. "Gramps, surely..." But he wouldn't meet my eyes either. He turned to Amos. "You can get them out of the country?" "Hang on!" I protested.**

"Ooh! Sadie being backstabbed!" shouted Amos.

"No, Mr. and Mrs. Faust here are simply looking out for the well-being of their granddaughter, even if it means a huge self-sacrifice on their part for it to happen. They should be proud."

Iskander, bringing you wise words of wisdom since who knows when?

**Amos stood and wiped the crumbs off his jacket. He walked to the patio doors and stared out at the river. "The police will be back soon. Tell them anything you like. They won't find us." "You're going to kidnap us?" I asked, stunned. I looked at Carter. "Do you believe this?" Carter shouldered the workbag. Then he stood like he was ready to go. Possibly he just wanted to be out of Gran and Gramps's flat.**

This made Robert and Catherine feel hurt. Their own grandson wanted to leave not only their apartment but their street, city, province, country, continent, side of the planet!

"Well" thought Robert. "That shall have to change. I'll teach Carter all about rugby and football and how to be a real man!"

Hey, not everybody's perfect!

** "How do you plan to get to New York in an hour?" he asked Amos. "You said, not a plane." "No," Amos agreed. He put his finger to the window and traced something in the condensation—another bloody hieroglyph.**

"You know, I'm starting to get the feeling that they might be getting sick of hieroglyphics" said Jamal.

"You know Jamal, I think you're really on to something" praised Aisha.

"Yeah, what?"

"The award for being Captain Obvious!" and with that Jamal received a playful smack on the back of his head.

Aisha was studying how Ruby and Julius and Catherine and Robert interacted with each other. Ruby and Catherine were much more themselves around everyone than Aisha was. So she decided to try and do the same.

** "A boat," I said—then realized I'd translated aloud, which I wasn't supposed to be able to do. Amos peered at me over the top of his round glasses. "How did you—" "I mean that last bit looks like a boat," I blurted out.**

"Smooth" Amos chuckled.

**"But that can't be what you mean. That's ridiculous." "Look!" Carter cried. I pressed in next to him at the patios doors. Down at the quayside, a boat was docked. But not a regular boat, mind you. It was an Egyptian reed boat, with two torches burning in the front, and a big rudder in the back. A figure in a black trench coat and hat—possibly Amos's—stood at the tiller. **

"And you did take Dad's boat!" said Julius.

Amos simply shrugged as way of response, making a non-committal sound in his throat.

**I'll admit, for once, I was at a loss for words. "We're going in that," Carter said. "To Brooklyn." "We'd better get started," Amos said. I whirled back to my grandmother. "Gran, please!" She brushed a tear from her cheek. "It's for the best, my dear. You should take Muffin." "Ah, yes," Amos said. "We can't forget the cat."**

"What is so special about Muffin?" asked Desjardins, fed up about the stupid cat already.

"We shall have to simply read and learn more on that matter".

**He turned towards the stairs. As if on cue, Muffin raced down in a leopard-spotted streak and leaped into my arms. She never does that. "Who are you?" I asked Amos. It was clear I was running out of options, but I at least wanted answers. "We can't just go off with some stranger." "I'm not a stranger." Amos smiled at me. "I'm family. "And suddenly I remembered his face smiling down at me, saying, "Happy birthday, Sadie." A memory so distant, I'd almost forgotten. "Uncle Amos?" I asked hazily. **

"See? I am NOT forgettable!" exclaimed Amos happily.

He even did a little victory dance to accompany his shout of joy.

**"That's right, Sadie," he said. "I'm Julius's brother. Now come along. We have a long way to go."**


End file.
